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Engagement Rings
Wedding Bands
Other Rings
Bracelets
Earrings
Necklaces/Pendants
Brooches/Pins
Diamond Jewelry
Emerald Jewelry
Sapphire Jewelry
Ruby Jewelry
Gemstone Jewelry
Pearl Jewelry
Akoya Pearls
Freshwater Pearls
South Sea Pearls
Tahitian Pearls
Men's Jewelry
Designer Jewelry
Period Jewelry
Georgian
Victorian
Art Nouveau
Arts & Crafts
Edwardian
Art Deco
Retro
1950's
1960's
1970's
1980's
Contemporary: 1990's - Today
Directory
Jewelry Time Periods
Gemstone Descriptions
Care of Fine Jewelry
Policies
About the Owners
Owner Biographies
Professional Organizations
Press
Period Jewelry
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Georgian
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1714 -1837 Encompasses the reigns of four kings George and King William IV of Great Britain. Metals used were pinchbeck (an alloy of copper and zinc), cut steel, Sheffield plate (a combination of silver and copper), silver and gold. Popular gemstones were diamonds, garnets, topaz, marcasite and paste (glass). Other types of gems used were pearls, coral, turquoise, and hardstones such as agates. Suites of matching jewelry called parures were popular. Gemstone cutting techniques were very primitive, and many gemstones were backed with foil to enhance and deepen color. Few of these pieces have survived intact. There are many excellent copies and fakes on the market, so one must be very cautious in purchasing jewelry from this time period.
Victorian
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1837 – 1901 Queen Victoria ascended the throne in Great Britain in 1837 and with her strong love of jewelry she influenced it for two thirds of a century. Throughout that time there were many different styles of jewelry ranging from heavy Gothic through romantic Art Nouveau. The industrial revolution also had a tremendous influence on styles and techniques of manufacturing. Jewelry was formerly only available to the wealthy and mass production permitted jewelry to be available to the general public. The most popular metal used was alloys of yellow gold such as rose gold, green gold. Silver was the white metal of choice and also seen was silver topped gold. Diamonds continued to be very popular, especially as cutting techniques became more sophisticated. More colored gemstones such as emeralds, rubies, sapphires, garnets, topaz, amethysts, citrines and opals were seen as the British Empire expanded around the world. Pearls and shell cameos were also very popular. At the very end of the century a new metal called platinum began to appear which influenced the future of jewelry manufacturing.
Art Nouveau
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1890 – 1910 A new aesthetic appeared in the art of Great Britain in the 1890’s which influenced jewelry manufacture for about two decades in Europe and America. This was a rebellion against mass produced jewelry. It was characterized by grace, movement, cleverness and elegance. The forms were feminine and naturalistic, utilized primarily yellow gold and the less precious gemstones such as moonstones, garnets, citrines, tortoise shell and seed pearls. A new type of enamel work called Plique A Jour produced extremely delicate and fragile beautiful works that almost looked like stained glass windows in jewelry. The masters of this technique were Lalique in France, Tiffany in the United States, and Masriera in Spain. Since this movement only lasted about 20 years, not much of this jewelry was made and very fewer pieces of the plique a jour enameled jewelry survived. These original pieces are rare and always expensive. There are many reproductions of the style and Masriera of Spain continues to produce in the style of the 19th century.
Arts & Crafts
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mid 1880’s – 1914 John Ruskin and William Morris in England were writers and philosophers who developed a romantic and idealistic view of the production of jewelry and goods as a rebellion to mass production. Their goal was to have small groups of jewelers produce handmade jewelry from less expensive materials for the general public. They generally worked in silver and pewter, but occasionally in gold, using inexpensive gemstones such as moonstones, chrysoprase, nephrite, coral, amethysts and citrines. Designs were linear and simple. Unfortunately, the designs had limited popularity and it actually was too expensive to produce them by hand except for Georg Jensen in Denmark. He not only produced jewelry, but also silverware and other decorative items in his workshops. There are limited numbers of Arts and Crafts jewelry available, and the better pieces are somewhat expensive.
Edwardian
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1901 - 1918 Edward, the playboy son of Queen Victoria, ascended the throne of Great Britain upon her death in 1901. Edward and his wife, Princess Alexandra had a taste for the finer things in life. Alexandra was an early client of Louis Cartier of Paris and popularized Cartier’s designs in the new metal, platinum. She disliked the heavy look of Victorian designs, both in fashion and in jewelry, and she introduced the light and lacey look in fashion. The intrinsic strength of platinum permitted the designs of jewelry to take on an open and lacey look. Diamonds and pearls were the gemstones of choice as the “white look” was all the rage. Jewelry was characterized by the exquisite open look of swags, ribbons and bows, with a romantic theme. With the onset of World War I in 1914, the metal platinum became unavailable for jewelry. In addition, many jewelers were drafted into military service so design and production of jewelry nearly stopped. When the war ended in 1918, the world was ready for a new look.