About Mexican Silver Maker Ricardo Salas of MATL

Ricardo Salas is the nephew of internationally renowned Matilde Eugenia Poulat, who founded the MATL silversmith. Matilde established her workshop in Mexico City in 1934, having trained as an artist. In the 1940’s she became internationally renowned for her work, which accentuated more pre-historic Mexican styles and used a spectacular array of intensely colored stones, most often amethyst, turquoise, and coral.

Ricardo joined his Aunt in the business when he was only 11 years old and became exceptionally talented in his own right. Over time he created his own designs, which mirror Matilde’s focus on pre-European Mexican native influences. In the case of Ricardo, he admired Mayan pre-historic art and has incorporated that into his work.

Ricardo continues to design pieces out of the MATL home workshop. These pieces are still handcrafted, primarily by members of his family. His jewelry is still marked MATL, but also with his Salas signature or MS-12. Like his Aunt, his jewelry is highly collectible and will likely continue to increase in value over time.