The artistic silver jewelry produces by artisans in Tlaxco, the traditional Mexican town
In the last decades, Tlaxco has become a destination to find silver pieces with Mexican touches, using the lost wax way.
Shelf with earrings that have flowers and angels, while in the background face of Frida Kahlo appears. Photo: Pedro López Hernández.
TLAXCO. In Mexico, places like Taxco, Real del Monte and Zacatecas have the tradition of making artistic jewelry with silver. But another site gained popularity in the elaboration of this.
Tlaxco, located in Tlaxcala state and approximately 2 hours of distance from Mexico City, appeared formally in the Pre-Hispanic period, but in the colonial time was an important livestock place for the region. Today, Tlaxco is an elemental dairy producer village and silver jewelry is also manufactured there that fuses modernity and rescues Mexican roots.
Tlaxco downtown. Photo: Pedro López Hernández.
The tradition of the mentioned municipality began with the silversmith Eva Martínez, who emigrated to Tlaxcala in order to rescue machinery that was used to make jewelry. So, she began to innovate and create designs with elements of Mexican culture.
Metlart is one of the workshops in the town that elaborates traditional silver pieces. The atelier follows the teachings of artist Martínez, the result of years of dedication, classes, observation of other Mexican silver markets and innovation. There pieces are made that are based on models from past centuries, with the aim of rescuing ancient Mexican art, in addition to promoting the beauty of silversmithing and making jewelry accessible to the public.
The notable thing is the pieces are made using the lost wax method, which consists in more than 20 steps. First, wax is poured into a mold using an injector, then the pieces are accommodated in something similar to a tree and once finished, there are placed in a metal cup, which after resting for days is taken to the oven at a temperature that evaporate the wax.
The intricate process can result in a beautiful piece or something unexpected that is thrown away. Not everything ends up in the desired shape, as the jewelry requires polishing and perfecting. The complexity of the pieces is what determines how much time artisans will spend on a piece, as in the case of antique earrings.
“There are times when it takes us more than six months to work on a piece. In fact, we not only make current designs, we also rescue jewelry from centuries past or we also make pieces to order, as on one occasion when we reproduced earrings that dated back to the time of the Mexican Revolution”; explained Elena, artisan and workshop manager.
Modern and ancient silversmithing combines with the fact that the silver used to make the pieces is pure (grade .925) and is not attracted by a magnet to prevent the properties and characteristics of the material from being lost.
Although there are pieces such as pendants, necklaces, chains and rings with trendy designs, there are also others such as Christian crosses, corn, birds and flowers from the region, with the aim of rescuing cultural values. In the workshop they even recreate the model of earrings worn by the famous Frida Kahlo. There are also pieces accompanied by minerals, pearls or gemstones such as obsidian, tiger's eye, red coral, cut crystal, zirconium, among others.
Designs based on Mexican culture. Photo: Pedro López Hernández.
The manager explained: “When there are visitors in Tlaxco, they don't just come to the workshop or get to know others, they also visit other attractions in the village. When they buy a piece, they take home something handcrafted and the prices are affordable”.
The artisans provide a free explanation of the production process and also show the materials involved. It is a recreational experience to learn about artisanal work.
By Pedro López Hernández
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