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Rafael Melendez (1911-1980) was on of the first silversmiths employed by William Spratling, he began working at the Spratling shop in 1932 and by 1939 had founded his own workshop "Plateria Melendez". A good technician with a tendency to work in heavy gauge 980 silver, Melendez favored pierced designs with cincel decoration, applied domes and the occasional use of cabochon cut stones. It is understood that many of the later Taxco smiths were trained in the taller of Melendez. All of the examples illustrated below are pre-eagle period and made from 980 silver.
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