F BECENTI Navajo S Silver Concho Belt 1 of Kind Unisex SORRY, NO FREE SHIPPING ON INTERNATIONAL ORDERS US ONLY Start Price USD 1,199.95 Current Price USD 1,199.95 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Tuesday, November 11, 2008 End Time Friday, November 21, 2008 Location Topeka, Kansas See more about 'F BECENTI Navajo S Silver Concho Belt 1 of Kind Unisex' Description SORRY - NO FREE SHIPPING ON INTERNATIONAL ORDERS -- FREE SHIPPING FOR US ORDERS ONLY! Buy this item and all others ship FREE as well (buyer pays insurance only on other items.) This isn't one of those Chinese or Philippines concho belts being misrepresented as Native American made so it can't sold for the same price. It's a deeply discounted concho belty created by an artist whose work is on display at the prestigious Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona. Of the many fun things about prowling around trading companies in the southwest is running across something really special that for a variety of reasons seems to have escaped attention. This is one of those unique, custom items that Floyd made four or five years ago for a special customer who ars never picked it up. So his loss could be your gain as I got a really great deal on this one of kind, partially inlaid kachina spirits concho belt. Native Americans revered most natural things they saw around them -- a wide variety of animals and spirits that play specific roles in their culture. Kachinas have their origins in ancient Hopi culture -- called katsinas in the Hopi language -- and have been widely copied by the Navajo. The eight conchos on this belt portray the Ahote kachina spirit. Ahote is the equivalent of the head or managing kachina who supervises all others. Including the buckle, it features nine conchos five of which boast inlaid robin's egg blue domestic spiderweb turquoise and (mouths) and Dry Creek turquoise (eyes). The remaining four conchos feature Floyd (and his brother Lloyd's) signature kachina (Mudhead and Morning Singer) and ceremonial dancer (Floyd's mom) overlaid story panels. Each hand crafted Ahote concho measures 2½" by 2 and 1/8th" and features hand stamped ruffs and engraved eagle feather headdresses. The Becenti family developed and refined an readily identifiable and distinctive overlay style. Floyd Becenti Sr. passed on a marvelous legacy to his two sons, Floyd, Jr. and Lloyd -- he taught them the distinctive overlay style he'd learned indirectly from Hopi artists who began using it in earnest after World War II. His sons have improved on this style over the years by adding a great deal more detail to each piece they make as well as refining both the story themes and the appearance of the story elements. Their work is on permanent display at the internationally famous Heard Museum in Phoenix, and you'll find their work in prestigious southwestern galleries as well as all the current collectors' guides. While Floyd and Lloyd have made just about everything imaginable, they're best known for their kachina, animal, and Navajo life-themed story pieces -- principally bracelets and concho belts all of which have tremendous variations in size, weight, and price and all of which will likely appreciate in value just like Floyd Sr.'s have over the years. With a 48" long by 1¼"" wide finished black leather belt blank, this unique overlay style belt will fit waists up to about 46½." Gentlemen typically wear concho around their waists, while ladies wear belts with larger conchos like these slanted off the hips. If you need a long belt, many leather supply and craft stores carry longer leather belt blanks that should work. Should you need a shorter belt, the belt can be easily shortened with a pair of sharp scissors. After carefully deciding on the concho placement that you prefer, take a pencil and mark where you need to punch holes for the buckle. When you're certain where you want the holes, you cna punch these holes with a leather punch or even with an ice pick. Each concho belt the Becentis make is a truly unique piece that reflects the distinctive Becenti overlay style. Overlay is a process that utilizes at least two layers of sterling silver and allows the artist to create extraordinary detail when done well. One layer forms the foundation of the concho while the second and third layers are used to design the overlay elements such as the animals, plants, trees, and suns. These design elements are then bonded onto the thicker bottom layer Please help GOOD ebay Native American jewelry sellers remain in business -- sellers who actually care about you, the jewelry, and the artists to furnish you with enough information to make an intelligent, informed buying decision. This includes dimensions, sizes, and information about the artist, the stones when applicable and other details that help ensure your satisfaction. Those who are in a race to the bottom are severely damaging the business and the artists! On ebay, in the end you get what you pay for. The most expensive things you can buy often began as the cheapest. No foreign knockoffs, no seconds, no stolen merchandise, no plastic, no silver plate or nickel silver, and no 'refurbished' merchandise sold here! of the buckle and conchos which Floyd oxidized and acid-etched in order to produce the contrasting, textured darker background color which will further darken with age as it acquires a natural patina.   This would retail for $2000.00 and up in the southwest. This belt bears the original Becenti B-¢-t hallmark and Floyd's sterling stamp. Payment is expected no later than ten days after your purchase. Questions: Questions about this item only, please, from serious buyers only and NO questions that are answered in the product description. Most of the questions I receive have nothing to do with the item or are answered in the product description. I don't accept offers (see below), do free appraisals, free research, put members in touch with artists, sell wholesale, or take custom orders so please don't email me about these issues, out of idle curiosity, or questions not pertaining to the item. Pricing: Unlike many other ebay sellers, I don’t over inflate listing prices on the first one or two listings and then cut the price on subsequent listings to fool buyers into think they’re getting a hot deal or a “sale“ item. My prices are fair and firm, I don’t negotiate lower prices on or off ebay, and I don’t accept Best Offers which are seller killers. Please respect this. Anyone submitting an offer or asking for an additional discount may be blocked and reported to ebay. Extra Photos: Please remember that people buy millions of dollars’ worth of products each month in this country from catalogues where generally there’s only one photograph and about three short descriptive lines. Sorry, no additional photos are available for this item. CORRECT Email Address: Your ISP’s or your email’s spam filter can and sometimes does prevent delivery of many emails. If you don’t hear from me, this is probably why so please don‘t think you’re being ignored because every purchase and payment is acknowledged. If you don’t hear from me, please check your span/trash directory. Making Smart Buying Choices: Remember, choose wisely. Save for a while if necessary to buy the best pieces you can possibly afford. Don’t just spend money, invest it in good quality items that have possible future investment potential. It's against federal law to misrepresent foreign made jewelry as Native American. Protect this investment and assure the Native American authenticity of your purchases by requiring a Certificate of Authenticity. Be wary of items with many bids -- especially when the bidding exceeds $200.00, and ebay hides the bidders‘ identities. The truth is that there isn’t enough traffic anymore in the Native American jewelry category to generate lots of bids on most items, and sellers you wouldn‘t expect routinely engage in shill bidding practices. Be skeptical of sellers who say they’ve signed some vague paper with an anonymous third party to accurately represent their items. Ebay has no such requirement. With Fixed Price listings and No Second Chance Offers that are responsible for most fraud against buyers, shilling is impossible. You can have confidence the buyer is a legitimate buyer -- not me under a different ID and not any associates engaging in a fraudulent shill bidding scheme to drive prices up. Authenticity and Provenance: This is a new rather than a previously owned item, and a Certificate of Authenticity guaranteeing its Native American origin is included. The jewelry I sell isn’t stolen (ebay is a leading venue for stolen merchandise and, yes, some of what you see in the Native American jewelry category is stolen), and the artists and traders have been all paid so you needn’t worry about the police knocking on your door or any letters from attorneys. Everything but pawn sterling silver jewelry and stone necklaces are cleaned and polished with tarnish retardant polish before shipping so that it arrives looking sparkling clean and odor free. Buy Only Authentic Native American Jewelry: If you care whether the jewelry you buy is authentic Native American, please click on the View Seller's Other Items link in the box at the top of the page at right. A substantial percentage of the jewelry offered in the Native American category is actually made in China, the Philippines, India, Indonesia, the Middle East, Mexico, and elsewhere and then misrepresented as Navajo or Zuni. Two-thirds of all so-called Native American jewelry sold in this country is fake, and a lot of it is sold on ebay by sellers who should know better both in terms of the law, good ethics, and knowledge about the true origins of their products. Multiple Item Shipping: For your convenience and savings, multiple jewelry purchases purchased within a 10 day period can be shipped together Priority Mail -- just please let me know when you begin buying. Your new jewelry will be carefully packed by people who care whether your hand made jewelry art arrives in the same condition it was when shipped because it deserves to be properly protected. On international orders, some items can be combined for fixed rate shipping, and others can’t. Please email me if you a question about multiple item international shipping. U.S. Domestic Shipping and Insurance: Same day USPS Priority Mail shipping with 2-3 business day delivery and FREE delivery confirmation except weekends, holidays, unplanned events like doctors‘ appointments and illness, dangerous weather, and buying trips from a non-smoker on receipt of payment before 3 pm Central Time. I require Post Office internally trackable insurance on all shipments to protect you against Post Office loss or damage because delivery and signature confirmation are NOT true tracking in case something is lost. PayPal requires signature confirmation on all shipments of $250.00 or more which will be included when applicable at cost with the insurance. USPS Express Mail with overnight delivery to most but not all locations available -- cost varies by item shape, size, and weight of your purchase(s) -- please email for a quote. There will be a small handling charge on Express Mail items to cover packing materials and gas to the Post Office. Otherwise, I charge only ACTUAL COSTS for USPS shipping, insurance, and signature confirmation, FREE delivery confirmation, and NO handling charges. International Shipping and Insurance: PayPal REQUIRES online tracking for ALL international shipments. If you are a new customer OR if you’re purchasing more than US$200.00 of merchandise, the risk is too great to ship without tracking and your order will be shipped by the least expensive tracked mail, USPS International Express Mail. Express Mail has a flat rate packet for smaller items OR the cost varies by weight and your location if the item is too large for the flat rate packet. If you are an established customer OR your item is less than US$200.00, your order will be shipped insured International 1st Class Mail. Recorded Delivery may be required on these orders. Most orders will arrive within 1-2 weeks, but exact delivery time depends on how fast your country’s customs clears the parcel. Exact shipping charges will vary by parcel weight, destination, and insurance depending on the size and weight of an item you purchase so please wait for my invoice. The U.S. Postal Service no longer furnishes free shipping supplies for international 1st class mail shipments so there will be a $1.00 charge for shipping materials. Otherwise, international shipment and insurance is always at cost. The Postal Service won’t insure silver, gold, or platinum jewelry so I use a private, third party insurance carrier for international shipments. Buyers are responsible for paying your country's duties and taxes if any. EXCLUDED COUNTRIES: Sorry, I can NOT ship to the following countries because insurance is impossible to obtain except to US military or diplomatic corps with APO/FPO addresses: Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola & Cabinda, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burma (Myanmar), Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Gabon, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kenya, Liberia, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Papua/New Guinea, Rwanda, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, and Yemen. Note about PayPal E-Checks: To keep buyer and seller protection plans intact, PayPal policy prohibits sellers from sending merchandise until they approve all e-checks so shipment will be delayed. If you want or need instant shipment, then please use the credit or debit card option with PayPal. Sales tax: Only Kansas residents must pay Kansas sales tax. Feedback Policy: A transaction is considered complete when you receive your items and post feedback. I will then post feedback within a few days. Please be patient as I have many, many feedbacks to do and don’t use those impersonal automated feedback systems. Returns: Sales are not made on an approval basis and you are expected to keep you what you’ve agreed to buy except for major misrepresentation or major defect. Ebay no longer refunds sellers final value fees on returns if the buyer didn’t pay with PayPal so this policy varies with specific circumstances. Ebay never refunds listing fees. Returns must be approved in advance and then return shipped within 3 business days of receipt, and the item must be returned in its original condition or full credit may not be given. I issue merchandise credits less a restocking fee. A restocking fee is necessary to cover a part of the enormous amount of time and a high number of hidden expenses that returns create that buyers are unaware of. Buyers who chronically return items will be permanently blocked at the sole discretion of this seller. © Photos and product description: Ebay and non Ebay sellers: please take your own photos, do your own research, and write your own product descriptions. This is copyrighted material and finding my product descriptions and research on other seller‘s item pages and websites won‘t be tolerated. Please respect the plagiarism laws. Thank you.   On Jun-02-07 at 04:06:53 PDT, seller added the following information: Powered by eBay Turbo Lister The free listing tool. List your items fast and easy and manage your active items. Place a Bid!