JEWELLERY
Renaissance Era Jewellery
Pendants Were Regarded As
The Most Eminent Piece Of
Jewelry Of That Time.
Replacing The Brooch,
Pendants Were Worn With
Long Gold Chains Fixed To
The Dress Or Worn On The
Girdle. Carved To Perfection,
From The Front And The Back,
Pendants Had Miniature
Sculptures Of Biblical Scenes
And Monograms. They Were
Also Designed For Partners
Stating Their Initials With
Jewels.
Women Would Wear
Rings On All Five
Fingers And
Sometimes One On
Each Joint Of The
Finger. The Rings
Were Lavishly
Ornamented And
Some Even Had Hidden Space For Scented
Material To Eliminate Bad Odor. Men Would
Wear Their Engagement Rings On Their Necks,
While The Brides Received Engagement Rings
With A Single Studded Gem, Often Ruby. They
Were Also Adorned As Sundials, Compasses And
Later On As Actual Clocks. Signet Or Seal Rings
Were A Common Way To Inscribe Documents
And Might Be Worn By The Bourgeoisie.
Renaissance Era Jewellery
Earrings
In The Middle Age, Paintings Depicted How Women Had Their Ears Covered With Hair Until
The Renaissance When Earrings Made A Comeback. Ranging From Simple Pear Shaped Pearls
Earring To Exquisite Jewel Drops Renaissance Earrings Either Hanged From The Ear Or Were
Pierced Through Them.
Baroque Era Jewellery

The bow is one of the most prevalent features of Baroque jewelry. Its origin is in the
ribbon that was used to secure a jewel to a robe and turned into a popular motif itself.
Made of precious metal and decorated with gemstones, pearls, and enamel, the
bow brooch or pendant is seen on many portraits and designs.
Rococo Era Jewellery
Gorgeous Pearl Choker With Beautiful Rhinestones And A Rococo
Cameo Representing A Beautiful Noble Lady, As Painted By The French
Rococo Artist Francois Boucher. The Cameo Is Approx. 0,75 X 1 Inch
(1,8 X 2,5 Cm ) And Is Manufactured In Leadfree Antique Brass. The
Necklace Is Composed Of Four Strings Of Beautiful Pearls (Length Can
Be Adapted To Collar Size By Metal Chain Behind).
Romanticism Era Jewellery
Circa 1837-1840 Evening Dress Dictated Long Earrings. During The Decade
Incompassing 1840-1850, Women Wore Their Hair Parted In The Middle And
Wound Into Intricate Creations That Covered The Ears. This Style, Along With A
Fashion For Large Bonnets, Precluded The Wearing Of Earrings During This
Period And Few Were Produced. When Earrings Were Worn They Were Long So
As To Be Visible Below Their Covered Ears. In The 1850s Hair Receded From The
Face And Smaller Earrings And Hoops Began To Reappear And Earrings Were
Once Again A Jewelry Necessity.

Necklaces Were Worn Close To The Neck. Snake Necklaces With Realistic Gold
Scales Or Pavèd With Turquoise Coiled Close To The Neck. Pavé Diamond
Flowerheads And Clusters Of Leaves And Berries Wound Their Way Around The
Neck. Elaborate Chains Interspaced By Gems And Plaques With A Central Motif,
Sometimes Suspending A Fringe Of Gems Were Made In Many Different
Combinations. Rivieres, Particularly Amethyst, Strands Of Pearls, Coral Beads
And Cameos Were Popular Necklace Styles. Ribbons With Buckles And Pins
Were Worn On The Throat And Long Gold Chains With Or Without A Watch
Were Worn Throughout The Era. Pendants And Lockets Were Suspended From
Chains Or Hung On Ribbons And Featured Insect And Floral Motifs.
Romanticism Era Jewellery
Bracelets Were The Most Popular Item During The Romantic Period. They Were
Worn In Groups, Sometimes Matched Pairs, On The Bare Wrist During The Day,
Atop Gloves In The Evening. Coiled Serpents With Scales And Pavéd Turquoise For
The Middle Class, Sprung Bangles With Rich Blue Enamel And Diamonds For The
Well-heeled. Woven Pearls And Beads, Hairwork, Ribbons And Woven Metal Mesh
Bracelets With Elaborate Clasps, Often Set With A Portrait Miniature Or Cameo,
Were Abundant. Straps And Jarretière (Garter) Bracelets With Buckles Displayed
Elaborate Enamel And Engraving Work. Flexible And Expansion Bracelets Gained
Popularity Because They Could Be Made To Fit Any Part Of The Arm, With Or
Without Gloves.

Snakes Made An Appearance In The Form Of Rings As Well, Made More Popular
As A Result Of The Queen’s Betrothal Ring Styled As An Emerald Studded Serpent.
There Were Gold Rings Carved In High Relief With Figural Motifs, Half Hoop Bands
Gem-set Only On The Top, Strap And Buckle Motif Rings And Mourning Rings With
Black Enamel. Delicate Cluster Rings And Romantic Floral Motifs Served As Love
Tokens.
Art Nouveau
In The 1890s, Jewellers Began To Explore The Potential Of The Growing Art Nouveau Style And
The Closely Related German Jugendstil, British (And To Some Extent American) Arts And Crafts
Movement, Catalan Modernisme, Austro-hungarian Sezession, Italian "Liberty", Etc.
Art Nouveau Jewellery Encompassed Many Distinct Features Including A Focus On The Female
Form And An Emphasis On Colour, Most Commonly Rendered Through The Use Of Enamelling
Techniques Including Basse-taille, Champleve, Cloisonné, And Plique-à-jour. Motifs Included
Orchids, Irises, Pansies, Vines, Swans, Peacocks, Snakes, Dragonflies, Mythological Creatures,
And The Female Silhouette.

The Dragonfly Brooch; Necklace; By René

By René Lalique; Circa Lalique; 1897–1899;
1897–1898; Gold, Vitreous Gold, Enamel, Opals And
Enamel, Chrysoprase, Chal  Amethysts; Overall
cedony, Moonstone And Diameter:
Diamond; Height: 23 Cm, 24.1 Cm; Metropolitan
Width: 26.5 Cm; Calouste Museum Of Art (New
Gulbenkian York City)
Museum (Lisboa, Portugal)
Art Deco Jewellery To The 1950s
This brooch commemorates the breaking of the World Land Speed Record by Captain
George Eyston in 1937. The car depicted is Thunderbolt, which Captain Eyston designed,
built and drove. It was powered by two aero engines made by the firm of Rolls-Royce,
which presented the brooch to Captain Eyston’s wife.
Contemporary Jewellery
Since the 1960s the boundaries of jewellery have been continually redefined. Conventions have
been challenged by successive generations of independent jewellers, often educated at art college
and immersed in radical ideas.
Avant-garde artist-jewellers have explored the interaction of jewellery with the body, pushing the
boundaries of scale and wearability to the limits. Jewellery has developed into wearable art. The debate on
its relationship to Fine Art continues.