This feels like something Tom Willeto found in the desert rather than something he made.
Two pale pieces of Dry Creek turquoise sit one above the other like moons in different phases—one triangular and clouded with smoky lavender matrix, the other rounder and crossed by tiny golden-brown rivers. Willeto surrounded them with layer after layer of twisted wire, silver drops, and hand-stamped half-sunbursts, then crowned the entire object with a massive fluted bail.
It’s technically a pendant. Emotionally, it’s a small ceremonial object from a civilization we haven’t discovered yet.
Why This Piece Matters
Dry Creek turquoise is prized for doing almost the exact opposite of what turquoise is expected to do. Instead of vivid blue, it appears here in shades of ivory, cream, pale atmospheric blue, warm earth, and smoke.
Using two large natural cabochons allows the full range of the material to unfold within a single composition. Neither stone was forced into a calibrated match. Willeto instead used their differences to create a stacked, architectural design with the visual rhythm of an ancient figure eight.
The silverwork is exceptionally complete. Twisted-wire borders define each stone, dimensional raindrops anchor the center, and repeated stamped crescents radiate around the exterior. Even the bail becomes a major design event: oversized, deeply fluted, and finished with its own central sunburst.
Artifact Registry
- Artifact Name: The Two Moons Pendant
- Artist: Tom Willeto
- Nation: Navajo (Diné)
- Hallmarks: Tom Willeto / Sterling
- Materials: Natural Dry Creek turquoise and sterling silver
- Construction: Hand-fabricated bezels, twisted-wire borders, applied silver drops, extensive hand-stamping and sculptural fluted bail
- Length: Approximately 2 inches
- Weight: 24 grams
- Era: Vintage
- Collector’s Gallery Value: $995
Curator’s Field Observation
The placement of the stones is unusually intelligent. The sharper triangular cabochon creates lift and direction at the top, while the rounder lower stone gives the pendant visual weight. Between them, two silver drops operate almost like a hinge, connecting two separate landscapes into one object.
The repeated half-sun stamps also keep the broad silver backplate from feeling heavy. They create a field of tiny radiating marks around the stones, echoing the enormous sunburst worked into the bail.
Eric’s Notes from the Field
This is exactly why I love Dry Creek.
From ten feet away, your brain says, “Beautiful white stone.” Then you get closer and realize there are lavender clouds, little rust-colored islands, golden rivers, and all this quiet geological chaos happening inside it.
And then Tom Willeto apparently decided a normal bail would be boring, so he built a giant silver crown on top. Correct decision. No notes.
It feels ancient, slightly cosmic, and extremely expensive—which is basically my entire personality in pendant form.
This feels like something Tom Willeto found in the desert rather than something he made.
Two pale pieces of Dry Creek turquoise sit one above the other like moons in different phases—one triangular and clouded with smoky lavender matrix, the other rounder and crossed by tiny golden-brown rivers. Willeto surrounded them with layer after layer of twisted wire, silver drops, and hand-stamped half-sunbursts, then crowned the entire object with a massive fluted bail.
It’s technically a pendant. Emotionally, it’s a small ceremonial object from a civilization we haven’t discovered yet.
Why This Piece Matters
Dry Creek turquoise is prized for doing almost the exact opposite of what turquoise is expected to do. Instead of vivid blue, it appears here in shades of ivory, cream, pale atmospheric blue, warm earth, and smoke.
Using two large natural cabochons allows the full range of the material to unfold within a single composition. Neither stone was forced into a calibrated match. Willeto instead used their differences to create a stacked, architectural design with the visual rhythm of an ancient figure eight.
The silverwork is exceptionally complete. Twisted-wire borders define each stone, dimensional raindrops anchor the center, and repeated stamped crescents radiate around the exterior. Even the bail becomes a major design event: oversized, deeply fluted, and finished with its own central sunburst.
Artifact Registry
- Artifact Name: The Two Moons Pendant
- Artist: Tom Willeto
- Nation: Navajo (Diné)
- Hallmarks: Tom Willeto / Sterling
- Materials: Natural Dry Creek turquoise and sterling silver
- Construction: Hand-fabricated bezels, twisted-wire borders, applied silver drops, extensive hand-stamping and sculptural fluted bail
- Length: Approximately 2 inches
- Weight: 24 grams
- Era: Vintage
- Collector’s Gallery Value: $995
Curator’s Field Observation
The placement of the stones is unusually intelligent. The sharper triangular cabochon creates lift and direction at the top, while the rounder lower stone gives the pendant visual weight. Between them, two silver drops operate almost like a hinge, connecting two separate landscapes into one object.
The repeated half-sun stamps also keep the broad silver backplate from feeling heavy. They create a field of tiny radiating marks around the stones, echoing the enormous sunburst worked into the bail.
Eric’s Notes from the Field
This is exactly why I love Dry Creek.
From ten feet away, your brain says, “Beautiful white stone.” Then you get closer and realize there are lavender clouds, little rust-colored islands, golden rivers, and all this quiet geological chaos happening inside it.
And then Tom Willeto apparently decided a normal bail would be boring, so he built a giant silver crown on top. Correct decision. No notes.
It feels ancient, slightly cosmic, and extremely expensive—which is basically my entire personality in pendant form.
