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An exceptionally beautiful Hopi tufa-cast gold band ring with “Inner Gem” turquoise inlays by Charles Loloma, 1971
Charles Loloma (1921-1991) was an artistic legend in his own time and his legend has only grown that much greater in the 34 years since his death. An artistic prodigy and polymath, like legendary Renaissance Masters, Leonardo Da Vinci or Michelangelo both of whom were highly accomplished in multiple artistic disciplines, Loloma began his extraordinary artistic career as a young teenager in the 1930’s as a remarkably-skilled painter and draftsman, progressed on to being a brilliant art ceramicist and finally in the 1950’s transitioned to being a ground-breaking jewelry-maker, relatively quickly becoming a world-renowned one.
This exceptional ring is a fairly early piece from one of the finest and most original periods of his jewelry work, the 1970’s. The quality, beauty, originality and overall creativity of this piece is simply astounding. This elegant tufa-cast inlaid gold ring is perfectly evocative of Loloma’s exalted and highly-refined aesthetic a lovely, complex, organic, earthy sculptural form in beautifully textured cast and finely inlaid gold, seemingly simple in some ways, yet really quite complex and extremely demanding to execute so perfectly.
“Charles was a charming, older middle-aged man with straight graying hair in typical Hopi cut
with a cloth head band and glasses. We told him of our desire for wedding rings and he immediately
said “They must be gold, for wedding rings”. He then proposed gold sand-cast rings and described his desire to decorate the inside with turquoise as this would be the hidden soul of the ring.”
-The ring’s former owners, 2023
We do not know how many of these “Inner Gem” rings Charles Loloma might have made in his career, but they are fairly rare in our 40-plus years of experience. We ourselves have only two others and we have only seen perhaps five or six additional ones over the years in addition to a similarly small number by Loloma’s niece and former jewelry apprentice, Verma “Sonwai” Nequatewa.
The ring is done in beautifully tufa-cast gold with a delightful textural contrast between the attractively irregular edges and the complex variegated main center section of the gold metal. The cast is exceptionally elaborate, and finely carved. This textural contrast provided by skillful carving of the tufa-mold to yield the unique cast metal surface and precise hand finishing is a lovely technique that emphasizes the beauty and preciousness of the complex undulating, irregular metal surface as it catches and reflects light in different ways. The ring is most beautifully and precisely inlaid entirely around the interior with sixteen precious “Inner Gem” turquoise pieces in all. The stones definitely have some wear, but they are all still in remarkably good original condition secure and tight in their settings despite their being over a half century in age. The gold is
not quality marked as Loloma often did not do so, but it appears to be 14K.
The ring measures a size 7 1/4 to 7 1/2 on a professional graduated ring sizer. It is just slightly under 1/2”
in continuous width all the way around and it weighs an extremely comfortable and easy to wear 8 grams or 1/4 ounce. The ring is in generally excellent original condition with some visible wear to the turquoise stone inlays and it is properly signed “Loloma” in Charles Loloma’s customary last name signature on the interior done here
in rocker engraving. Martha H. Struever in her excellent and definitive 2005 book “Loloma, Beauty is His Name” describes this particular type of Loloma signature as one which Charles used regularly in this early 1970's
time period stating it as follows:
"In the early 1970's, Loloma often rocker-engraved his signature."
-Martha H. Struever, 2005
At left, a modern day view of Charles Loloma’s former studio in Hotevilla, Arizona.
At right, Charles Loloma and his apprentice Verma Nequatewa at work in the studio, 1970.
Right photo source and © Martha H. Struever “Loloma, Beauty Is His Name”, Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, Santa Fe, 2005, pp.21
This ring could just as easily and appropriately be worn by a man or woman and it could be worn as strictly a fashion item or friendship ring and it would also make a perfect and very satisfying engagement and/or wedding ring particularly for any Southwestern or Native American arts collector or admirer. Not only was this the specifically intended purpose for which Charles Loloma created this ring in the first place, but we can also say this from our own extensive personal experience as we ourselves have both happily worn similar “Inner Gem” inlaid band rings in tufa-cast gold, shown here below, one by Charles Loloma and one by Verma “Sonwai” Nequatewa as our own wedding rings for the past 25 years.
This ring is a rare, completely classic and beautiful piece by a rare, completely classic and unique artist, very wearable and absolutely gorgeous anywhere and everywhere you might choose to wear it, lovely on the outside and additionally lovely in another different and deeper way on the inside, a constant and beautifully evocative and emotional reminder of your own precious inner personal private beauty, known only to you.
Price available upon request
Note: A copy of the 2023 provenance history letter telling the story of this ring written by the
ring's original owners will be included to the purchaser along with the purchase of the ring.
In addition to being a particularly beautiful piece of precious jewelry, this ring also has a particularly beautiful origin story. The general concept of making such a ring was first conceived by Charles Loloma sometime in the 1960's when Loloma began making this style of band ring which he said was made with hidden precious gems inlaid around the inside of the ring to express and remind the wearer of their unique hidden precious "Inner Gems" of personal private beauty and character which were known only to them. It’s a brilliant artistic idea and a truly lovely human sentiment and a distinctly Hopi one in our view.
In the summer of 1971, Loloma was visited at his home and studio at Hotevilla Village on the Hopi Third Mesa
by a young Pennsylvania couple who were interested in having some wedding rings made for themselves. Loloma proposed to them that he make them a pair of gold tufa-cast rings into which he would inlay turquoise around
the interior as this would be “the hidden soul” of the ring as the couple recounted he said. Charles made them the rings which the couple kept and wore as their wedding rings for the next 50-plus years until 2023 when they sold them to a colleague of ours because they could longer comfortably fit their now swollen and larger arthritic fingers. Our colleague subsequently sold the rings to us.
Above center, two other "Inner Gem" inlay rings in tufa cast gold by Charles Loloma and Verma "Sonwai" Nequatewa.