Jewellery
Jewellery (
Jewelry in
American English) is literally any piece of fine material used to adorn one's self. The word jewellery is derived from the word jewel, which was
anglicised from the Old
French "jouel" in around the
13th century. Further tracing leads back to the
Latin word
"jocale", meaning plaything.
Jewellery has probably been around since the dawn of man; indeed, recently found 100,000 year-old
Nassarius shells that were made into beads are thought to be the oldest known jewellery.
[22 June, 2006. Study reveals 'oldest jewellery'. BBC News.] Although in earlier times jewellery was created for more practical uses, such as pinning clothes together, in recent times it has been used almost exclusively for decoration. The first pieces of jewellery were made from
natural materials, such as
bone and
animal teeth,
shell,
wood and carved
stone. Jewellery was often made for people of high importance to show their status and in many cases, they were buried with it.
Jewellery is made out of almost every material known and has been made to adorn nearly every body part, from
hairpins to
toe rings and
many more types of jewellery. While high-quality and artistic pieces are made with
gemstones and
precious metals, less costly
costume jewellery is made from less valuable materials and is mass-produced.
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Kenyan man wearing tribal beads. |
Over time, jewellery has been used for a number of reasons:
* currency, wealth display and storage,
* functional use (such as clasps, pins, and buckles)
* symbolism (to show membership or status)
* protection (in the form of
amulets and magical wards), and
* artistic display
Most cultures have at some point had a practice of keeping large amounts of wealth stored in the form of jewellery. Numerous cultures move wedding
dowries in the form of jewelry, or create jewelry as a means to store or display coins. Alternatively, jewellery has been used as a currency or trade good; a particularly poignant example being the use of
slave beadsFunctional use dates back to the earliest days of jewellery; indeed, many items of jewelry, such as
brooches and
buckles originated as purely functional items, became more decorated over time, and in some cases became purely art objects as their functional requirement disappeared.
Jewellery can also be symbolic of group membership, as in the case of the
Christian crucifix or
Jewish Star of David, or status, as in the case of
chains of office, or the Western practice of
married people wearing a
wedding ring.
Wearing of
amulets and
devotional medals to provide protection or ward off evil is nearly universal; these may take the form of symbols (such as the
ankh), stones, plants, animals, body parts (such as the
Khamsa), or
glyphs (such as stylized versions of the
Throne Verse in
Islamic art).
[Morris, Desmond. Body Guards: Protective Amulets and Charms. Element, 1999 ISBN 1862045720] Although artistic display has clearly been a function of jewellery from the very beginnings, the other roles described above tended to take primacy. It was only in the late
19th century, with the work of such masters as
Peter Carl Fabergé and
René Lalique, that art began to take primacy over function and wealth. This trend has continued into modern times, expanded upon by artists such as
Robert Lee Morris.
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Anticlastic forged sterling bracelet. |
In creating jewellery, a variety of gemstones, coins or other precious items can be used, often set into precious metals. Common precious metals used for modern jewellery include
gold,
platinum or
silver; although alloys of nearly every metal known can be encountered in jewellery -
bronze, for example, was common in Roman times. Most gold alloys used in jewellery range from 10K to 22K gold (24K or pure gold is generally too soft for jewellery use), while platinum alloys range from 900 (90% pure) to 950 (95.0% pure). The silver used in jewellery is usually
sterling silver.
Other commonly used materials include
glass, such as fused glass or
enamel;
wood, often carved or turned;
shells and other natural animal substances such as
bone and
ivory; natural
clay,
polymer clay, and even
plastics.
Beads are frequently used in jewellery. These may be made of many different substances including glass, gemstones, metal, wood, shells, clay and polymer clay.
Beaded jewellery commonly encompasses necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and belts. Beads may be large or small. The smallest type of beads commonly used are known as
seed beads; these are the beads used for the "woven" style of beaded jewellery.
Advanced
glass and
glass beadmaking techniques by
Murano and
Venetian glassmasters made a significant difference in jewelry designs. These artisans developed and refined many technologies, creating crystalline glass, enameled glass (smalto), glass with threads of gold (aventurine), multicolored glass (
millefiori), milk glass (lattimo), and imitation gemstones made of glass. As early as the 13th century,
Murano glass and
Murano beads became known as the finest glass in the known world.
Silversmiths,
goldsmiths, and
lapidaries use numerous methods to create jewellery, including
forging,
casting,
soldering or
welding, cutting,
carving, and "cold-joining" (using
adhesives,
staples, and
rivets to assemble parts)
[McCreight, Tim. Jewelry: Fundamentals of Metalsmithing. Design Books International, 1997 ISBN 1880140292].
Diamonds
Diamonds, long considered the most prized of gemstones, were first mined in
India. Pliny may have mentioned them, although there is some debate as to the exact nature of the stone he referred to as
Adamas[Pliny. Natural History XXXVI, 15] ; Currently, Africa and Canada rank among the primary sources.
The
British crown jewels contain the
Cullinan Diamond, part of the largest gem-quality rough diamond ever found (1905), at 3,106.75
carats. Now popular in
engagement rings, this usage dates back to the marriage of
Maximilian I to
Mary of Burgundy in 1477.
Diamonds have long been associated with social issues; in
South Africa,
diamonds and gold were factors in the start of the
Second Boer War in the
1890s, they later factored in treatment of blacks during the
apartheid era, and have since been instrumental in exacerbating and prolonging other African conflicts (see
Blood diamonds).
One universal factor is control over who could wear what jewellery; a point which indicates the powerful symbolism the wearing of jewellery evoked. In ancient Rome, for instance, only certain ranks could wear rings
[Pliny the Elder. The Natural History. ed. John Bostock, H.T. Riley, Book XXXIII The Natural History of Metals Online at the Perseus Project Chapter 4. Accessed July 2006]; later,
sumptuary laws dictated who could wear what type of jewellery; again based on rank. Cultural dictates have also played a significant role; for example, the wearing of earings by Western men was considered "effeminate" in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Conversely, the jewellery industry in the early 20th century launched a campaign to popularize
wedding rings for men " which caught on " as well as
engagement rings for men (which did not), going so far as to create a false history and claim that the practice had medieval roots. By the mid 1940s, 85% of weddings in the US featured a double ring ceremony; up from 15% in the 1920s
[Howard, Vicky. "A real Man's Ring: Gender and the Invention of Tradition." Journal of Social History, Summer 2003, pp 837-856.]. Religion has also played a role: Islam for instance considers the wearing of gold by men as
Haram[Yusuf al-Qaradawi. ]The Lawful and Prohibited in Islam (online), and many religions have edicts against excessive display.[Greenbaum, Toni. ""SILVER SPEAKS: TRADITIONAL JEWELRY FROM THE MIDDLE EAST". ]Metalsmith'' Winter2004, Vol. 24 Issue 1, p56-56. Greenbaum provides the explanation for the lack of historical examples; the majority of Islamic jewellery was in the form of bridal
dowries, and traditionally was not handed down from generation to generation; instead, on a woman's death it was sold at the
souk and recycled or sold to passer-by. Islamic jewellery from before the 19th century is thus exceedingly rare.
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The Nassarius beads thought to be the oldest form of jewellery. |
The history of jewellery is a long one, with many different uses among different cultures. It has shaped the course of history and provides various insights into how ancient
cultures worked.
Early jewellery
The first signs of jewellery came from the
Cro-Magnons, ancestors of
Homo sapiens, around 40,000 years ago. The Cro-Magnons originally migrated from the
Middle East to settle in
Europe and replace the
Neanderthals as the dominant
species. The jewellery pieces they made were crude
necklaces and
bracelets of bone, teeth and stone hung on pieces of
string or animal
sinew, or pieces of carved bone used to secure clothing together. In some cases, jewellery had shell or
mother-of-pearl pieces. In southern
Russia, carved bracelets made of
mammoth tusk have been found. Most commonly, these have been found as grave-goods. Around 7,000 years ago, the first sign of
copper jewellery was seen.
[Holland, J. 1999. The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia. Kingfisher books.]Europe and the Middle East
Jewellery in Egypt
The first signs of established jewellery making in
Ancient Egypt was around 3,000-5,000 years ago. The
Egyptians preferred the luxury, rarity, and workability of
gold over other metals.
Predynastic Egypt had already acquired much gold; although the Egyptians acquired gold from the eastern
deserts of Africa and from
Nubia, in later years they captured it in the spoils of
war or were gifted it in tributes from other nations.
Jewellery in Egypt soon began to symbolise power and religious power in the community. Although it was worn by wealthy Egyptians in life, it was also worn by them in death; with jewellery commonly seen among
Grave goods. Unfortunately, due to graver-robbers much of this has been lost to history.
In conjunction with gold jewellery, Egyptians used coloured
glass in place of precious gems. Although the Egyptians had access to gemstones, they preferred the colours they could create in glass over the natural colours of stones. For nearly each gemstone, there was a glass formulation used by the Egyptians to mimic it. The colour of the jewellery was very important, as different colours meant different things; the
Book of the Dead dictated that the necklace of
Isis around a mummy's neck must be red to satisfy Isis's need for blood, while green jewellery meant new growth for crops and fertility. Although
lapis lazuli and silver had to be imported from beyond the country's borders, most other materials for jewellery were found in or near Egypt, for example in the
Red Sea, where the Egyptians mined
Cleopatra's favourite gem, the
emerald.
Egyptian jewellery was predominantly made in large workshops attached to
temples or
palaces.
Egyptian designs were most common in
Phoenician designs. Also, ancient
Turkish designs found in
Persian jewellery suggests trading from the Middle East into
Europe was not uncommon. Women used to wear elaborate gold and silver pieces that were used in ceremonies.
Mesopotamia
By approximately 4,000 years ago, jewellery-making had become a significant craft in the cities of
Sumer and
Akkad. The most significant archaeological evidence comes from the
Royal Cemetery of Ur, where hundreds of burials dating 2900"2300 BC were unearthed; tombs such as that of
Puabi contained a multitude of artifacts in gold, silver, and semi-precious stones, such as
lapis lazuli crowns embellished with gold figurines, close-fitting collar necklaces, and jewel-headed pins. In
Assyria, men and women both wore extensive amounts of jewellery, including
amulets, ankle bracelets, heavy multistrand necklaces, and
cylinder seals.
[Nemet-Nejat, Daily Life, 155"157.]Jewellery in Mesopotamia tended to be manufactured from thin metal leaf and was set with large numbers of brightly-colored stones (chiefly agate, lapis, carnelian, and jasper). Favored shapes included leaves, spirals, cones, and bunches of grapes. Jewellers created works both for human use and for adorning statues and idols; they employed a wide variety of sophisticated metalworking techniques, such as
cloisonne,
engraving, fine granulation, and
filigree.
[Nemet-Nejat, Daily Life, 295"297.]Extensive and meticulously maintained records pertaining to the trade and manufacture of jewellery have also been unearthed throughout Mesopotamian archaological sites. One record in the
Mari royal archives, for example, gives the composition of various items of jewellery:
Jewellery in Greece
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Gold earring from Mycenae, 16th century BCE |
The Greeks started using gold and gems in jewellery in 1,400 BC, although beads shaped as shells and animals were produced widely in earlier times. By 300 BC, the Greeks had mastered making coloured jewellery and using
amethysts,
pearl and
emeralds. Also, the first signs of
cameos appeared, with the Greeks creating them from
Indian Sardonyx, a striped brown pink and cream
agate stone. Greek jewellery was often simpler than in other cultures, with simple designs and workmanship. However, as time progressed the designs grew in complexity different materials were soon utilized.
Jewellery in Greece was hardly worn and was mostly used for public appearances or on special occasions. It was frequently given as a gift and was predominantly worn by woman to show their wealth, social status and beauty. The jewellery was often supposed to give the wearer protection from the "
Evil Eye" or endowed the owner with supernatural powers, while others had a religious symbolism. Older pieces of jewellery that have been found were dedicated to the Gods. The largest production of jewellery in these times came from Northern Greece and
Macedon. However, although much of the jewellery in Greece was made of gold and silver with
ivory and gems,
bronze and
clay copies were made also.
Jewellery makers in Ancient Greece were largely anonymous. They worked the types of jewellery into two different styles of pieces; cast pieces and pieces hammered out of sheet metal. Fewer pieces of cast jewellery have been recovered; it was made by casting the metal onto two stone or clay moulds. Then the two halves were joined together and
wax and then molten metal, was placed in the centre. This technique had been in practised since the late
Bronze Age. The more common form of jewellery was the hammered sheet type. Sheets of metal would be hammered to the right thickness & then soldered together. The inside of the two sheets would be filled with wax or another liquid to preserve the metal work. Different techniques, such as using a stamp or engraving, were then used to create motifs on the jewellery. Jewels may then be added to hollows or glass poured into special cavities on the surface.
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Ancient Greek jewellery from 300 BC. |
The Greeks took much of their designs from outer origins, such as Asia when
Alexander the Great conquered part of it. In earlier designs, other European influences can also be detected. When Roman rule came to Greece, no change in jewellery designs was detected. However, by 27 BC, Greek designs were heavily influenced by the Roman culture. That is not to say that indigenous design did not thrive; numerous
polychrome butterfly pendants on silver
foxtail chains, dating from the 1st Ccentury, have been found near
Olbia, with only one example ever found anywhere else
[Treister, Mikhail YU. "Polychrome Necklaces from the Late Hellenistic Period." Ancient Civilizations from Scythia to Siberia 2004, Vol. 10 Issue 3/4, p199-257, 59p.].
Jewellery in Rome
Although jewellery work was abundantly diverse in earlier times, especially among the barbarian tribes such as the
Celts, when the Romans conquered most of Europe, jewellery was changed as smaller factions developed the Roman designs. The most common artefact of early Rome was the
brooch, which was used to secure clothing together. The Romans used a diverse range of materials for their jewellery from their extensive resources across the continent. Although they used gold, they sometimes used bronze or bone and in earlier times, glass beads & pearl. As early as 2,000 years ago, they imported
Sri Lankan sapphires and Indian diamonds and used emeralds and
amber in their jewellery. In Roman-ruled
England, fossilized
wood called
jet from Northern England was often carved into pieces of jewellery. The early Italians worked in crude gold and created clasps, necklaces, earrings and bracelets. They also produced larger
pendants which could be filled with
perfume.
Like the Greeks, often the purpose of Roman jewellery was to ward off the "Evil Eye" given by other people. Although woman wore a vast array of jewellery, men often only wore a finger
ring. Although they were expected to wear at least one ring, some Roman men wore a ring on every finger, while others wore none. Roman men and women wore rings with a carved stone on it that was used with wax to seal documents, an act that continued into
medieval times when
kings and noblemen used the same method. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the jewellery designs were absorbed by neighbouring countries and tribes.
Medieval Jewellery
Post-Roman Europe continued to develop jewellery making skills; the
Celts and
Merovingians in particular are noted for their jewellery, which in terms of quality matched or exceeded that of Byzantium. Clothing fasteners, amulets, and to a lesser extent
signet rings are the most common artefacts known to us; a particularly striking celtic example is the
Tara Brooch. The
Torc was common throughout Europe as a symbol of status and power. By the 8th century, jewelled weaponry was common for men, while other jewellery (with the exception of signet rings) seems to become the domain of women. Grave goods found in a 6th-7th century burial near
Chalon-sur-Saône are illustrative; the young girl was buried with: 2 silver
fibulae, a necklace (with coins), bracelet, gold earings, a pair of hair-pins, comb, and buckle
[Duby Georges and Philippe Ariès, eds. A History of Private Life Vol 1 - From Pagan Rome to Byzantium. Harvard, 1987. p 506]. The
Celts specialized in continuous patterns and designs; while Merovignian designs are best known for stylized animal figures.
[Duby, throughout.] They were not the only groups known for high quality work; note the Visigoth work shown here, and the numerous decorative objects found at the
Anglo-Saxon Ship burial at
Sutton Hoo Suffolk,
England, are a particularly well-known example.
On the continent,
cloisonné and
garnet were perhaps the quintessential method and gemstone of the period.
The Eastern successor of the Roman Empire, the
Byzantine Empire, continued many of the methods of the Romans, though religious themes came to predominate. Unlike the Romans, the Frankish, and the Celts, however, Byzantium used light-weight gold leaf rather than solid gold, and more emphasis was placed on stones and gems. As in the West, Byzantine jewellery was worn by wealthier females, with male jewellery apparently restricted to signet rings. Like other contemporary cultures, jewellery was commonly buried with its owner.
[ Sherrard, P. 1972. Great Ages of Man: Byzantium. Time-Life International.]Renaissance
The
Renaissance and exploration both had significant impacts on the development of jewellery in Europe. By the 17th century, increasing exploration and trade lead to increased availability of a wide variety of gemstones as well as exposure to the art of other cultures. Whereas prior to this the working of gold and precisou metal had been at the forefront of jewellery, this period saw increasing dominance of gemstones and their settings. A fascinating example of this is the
Cheapside Hoard, the stock of a jeweller hidden in London England during the
Commonwealth period and not found again until 1912. It contained Colombian
emerald,
topaz,
amazonite from Brazil,
spinel,
iolite, and
chrysoberyl from Sri Lanka,
ruby from India, Afghani
lapis lazuli, Persian
turquoise, Red Sea
peridot, as well as Bohemian and Hungarian
opal,
garnet, and
amethyst. Large stones were frequently set in box-bezels on enamelled rings.
[Scarisbrick, Diana. Rings: Symbols of Wealth, Power, and Affection. New York: Abrams, 1993. ISBN 0810937751 p77.] Notable among merchants of the period was
Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, who in the 1660s brought the precursor stone of the
Hope Diamond to France.
When
Napoleon was crowned as Emperor of France in
1804, he revived the style and grandeur of jewellery and fashion in France. Under Napoleon's rule, jewellers introduced
parures, suits of matching jewellery, such as a diamond
tiara, diamond
earrings, diamond rings, a diamond brooch and a diamond necklace. Both of Napoleon's wives had beautiful sets such as these and wore them regularly. Another fashion trend resurrected by Napoleon was the
cameo. Soon after his cameo decorated crown was seen, cameos were highly sought after. The period also saw the early stages of
costume jewellery, with
fish scale covered glass beads in place of
pearls or
conch shell cameos instead of stone cameos. New terms were coined to differentiate the arts: jewellers who worked in cheaper materials were called
bijoutiers, while jewellers who worked with expensive materials were called
joailliers; a practice which continues to this day.
Romanticism
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Mourning jewellery: Jet Brooch, 19th century |
Starting in the late 18th century,
Romanticism had a profound impact on the development of western jewellery. Perhaps the most significant influences were the public's fascination with the treasures being discovered through the birth of modern
archaeology, and the fascination with Medieval and Renaissance art. Changing social conditions and the onset of the
industrial revolution also lead to growth of a middle class that wanted and could afford jewellery. As a result, the use of industrial processes, cheaper alloys, and stone substitutes, lead to the development of paste or
costume jewellery. Distinguished goldsmiths continued to flourish, however, as wealthier patrons sought to ensure that what they wore still stood apart from the jewellery of the masses, not only through use of precious metals and stones but also though superior artistic and technical work; one such artist was the French goldsmith
Françoise Désire Fromment Meurice. A category unique to this period and quite appropriate to the philosophy of romanticism was
mourning jewellery. It originated in England, where
Queen Victoria was often seen wearing
jet jewellery after the death of
Prince Albert; and allowed the wearer to continue wearing jewellery while expressing a state of mourning at the death of a loved one.
[Farndon, J. 2001. 1,000 Facts on Modern History. Miles Kelly Publishing.] In the United states, this period saw the founding in 1837 of
Tiffany & Co. by
Charles Lewis Tiffany. Tiffany's put the United States on the world map in terms of jewellery, and gained fame creating dazzling commissions for people such as the wife of
Abraham Lincoln; later it would gain popular notoriety as the setting of the film
Breakfast at Tiffany's. In France,
Pierre Cartier founded
Cartier SA in 1847, while 1884 saw the founding of
Bulgari in Italy. The modern production studio had been born; a step away from the former dominance of individual craftsmen and
patronage.
This period also saw the first major collaboration between East and West; collaboration in
Pforzheim between German and Japanese artists lead to
Shakudo plaques set into
Filigree frames being created by the Stoeffler firm in 1885)
[Ilse-Neuman, Ursula. Book review "Schmuck/Jewellery 1840-1940: Highlights from the Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim. ‘'Metalsmith. Fall2006, Vol. 26 Issue 3, p12-13, 2p]. Perhaps the grand finale " and an appropriate transition to the following period " were the masterful creations of the French artist
Peter Carl Fabergé, working for the Imperial Russian court, whose
Fabergé eggs and jewellery pieces are still considered as the epitome of the goldsmith's art.
Art Nouveau
In the
1890s, jewellers began to explore the potentials of the growing
Art Nouveau style. Very closely related were the German
Jugendstil, British (and to some extent American)
Arts and Crafts movement.
René Lalique, working for the Paris shop of
Samuel Bing, was recognized by contemporaries as a leading figure in this trend. The
Darmstadt artists colony and
Wiener Werkstaette provided perhaps the most significant German input to the trend, while in Denmark
Georg Jensen "though best known for his
Silverware also contributed significant pieces/ In England,
Liberty & Co and the British arts & crafts movement of
Charles Robert Ashbee contributed slightly more linear but still characteristic designs. The new style moved the focus of the jeweller's art from the setting of stones to the artistic design of the piece itself; Lalique's famous dragonfly design is one of the best examples of this.
Enamels played a large role in technique, while sinuous organic lines are the most recognizable designb feature. The end of World War One once again changed public attitudes; and a more sober style was set to take center-stage.
[Constantino, Maria. Art Nouveau. Knickerbocker Press; 1999 ISBN 1577150740 as well as Ilse-Neuman 2006.]Deco
Growing political tensions, the aftereffects of the war, and a general reaction against the perceived decadence of the turn of the century led to simpler forms, combined with more effective manufacturing for mass production of high-quality jewellery. Covering the period of the 1920s and 1930s, the style has become popularly known as
Art Deco.
Walter Gropius and the German
Bauhaus movement, with their philosophy of "no barriers between artists and craftsmen" lead to some interesting and stylistically simplified forms. Modern materials were also introduced: plastics and aluminum were first used in jewellery, and of note are the chromed pendants of Russian born Bauhaus master
Naum Slutzky. Technical mastery became as valued as the material itself; in the west, this period saw the reinvention of granulation by the German
Elizabeth Treskow (although development of the re-invention has continued into the 1990s).
Jewellery in Asia
Jewellery making in Asia started in
China 5,000 years ago and in the
Indus Valley region later on. With roots set deep in religious designs, Asian jewellery was very decorative and used most often in ceremonies.
Jewellery in China
The earliest culture to begin making jewellery in Asia was the
Chinese around 5,000 years ago. Chinese jewellery designs were very religion-orientated and contained many
Buddhist symbols, a fact which remains to this day.
The Chinese used
silver in their jewellery more often than gold, and decorated it with their favourite colour, blue. Blue
kingfisher feathers were tied onto early Chinese jewellery and later, blue gems and glass were incorporated into designs. However, Chinese preferred
jade over any other stone. They fashioned it using
diamonds, as indicated in finds from areas in the country. The Chinese revered jade because of the human-like qualities they assigned to it, such as its hardness, durability and beauty.
[Holland, J. 1999. The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia. Kingfisher books.] The first jade pieces were very simple, but as time progressed, more complex design evolved. Jade rings from beween the 4th and 7th centuries BCE show evidence of having been worked with a compound
milling machine; hunderds of years before the first mention of such equipment in the west.
[Lu, Peter J., "Early Precision Compound Machine from Ancient China." Science, 6/11/2004, Vol. 304, Issue 5677] In China, jewellery was worn frequently by both sexes to show their nobility and wealth. However, in later years, it was used to accentuate beauty. Woman wore highly detailed gold and silver head dresses and numerous other items, while men wore decorative hat buttons which showed rank and gold or silver rings. Woman also wore strips of gold on their foreheads, much like women in the Indus Valley. The band served a purpose like an early form of
tiara and it was often decorated with precious gems. The most common piece of jewellery worn by Chinese was the earring, which was worn by both men and women.
Amulets were also common too, often with a Chinese symbol or
dragon. In fact, dragons, Chinese symbols and also
phoenixes were frequently depicted on jewellery designs.
The Chinese often placed their jewellery in their graves; most Chinese graves found by
archaeologists contain decorative jewellery.
[Reader's Digest Association. 1983. Vanished Civilisations. Reader's Digest.]Jewellery in India
The Indian sub-continent has the longest continuous legacy of jewellery making anywhere. While Western traditions were heavily influenced by waxing and waning empires, India enjoyed a continuous development of art forms for some 5000 years
[Untracht, Oppi. Traditional Jewelry of India. New York: Abrams, 1997 ISBN 0810938863. p15.] One of the first to start jewellery making were the peoples of the
Indus Valley region. By 1,500 BC the peoples of the Indus Valley were creating gold earrings and necklaces, bead necklaces and metallic
bangles. Before 2,100 BC, prior to the period when metals were widely used, the largest jewellery trade in the Indus Valley region was the
bead trade. Beads in the Indus Valley were made using simple techniques. First, a bead maker would need a rough stone, which would be bought from an eastern stone trader. The stone would then be placed into a hot oven where it would be heated until it turned deep red, a colour highly prized by people of the Indus Valley. The red stone would then be chipped to the right size and a hole drilled through it with primitive drills. The beads were then polished. Some beads were also painted with designs. This art form was often passed down through family; children of bead makers often learnt how to work beads from a young age.
Jewellery in the Indus Valley was worn predominantly by females, who wore numerous clay or shell bracelets on their wrists. They were often shaped like doughnuts and painted black. Over time, clay bangles were discarded for more durable ones. In
India today, bangles are made out of
metal or glass. Other pieces that women frequently wore were thin bands of gold that would be worn on the forehead, earrings, primitive brooches,
chokers and gold rings. The people of the region were much more urbanised than the rest of the area, so the jewellery worn was of heavier make once the civilization developed. Although women wore jewellery the most, some men in the Indus Valley wore beads. Small beads were often crafted to be placed in men and women's hair. The beads were so small they usually measured in at only 1 millimetre long.
Unlike many other cultures, Indus Valley jewellery was never buried with the dead. Instead, jewellery was passed down to children or family. Nobility and goldsmiths often hid their jewellery under their floorboards to avoid theft.
As time progressed, the methods for jewellery advanced, thus allowing complex jewellery to be made. Necklaces were soon adorned with gems and
green stone.
Although they used other gems prior,
India was the first country to mine
diamonds, with some mines dating back to 296 BC. However, axes dating to 4,000 BC found in China from previous factions of the country, contain traces of diamond dust used to sharpen the blades. While China used the diamonds they found mainly for carving jade, India traded the diamonds, realising their valuable qualities. This trade almost vanished 1,000 years after
Christianity grew as a religion, as Christians rejected the diamonds which were used in Indian religious amulets. Along with
Arabians from the
Middle East restricting the trade, India's diamond jewellery trade lulled.
Today, many of the jewellery designs and traditions are still used and jewellery is commonplace in Indian ceremonies and weddings.
[Reader's Digest Association. 1983. Vanished Civilisations. Reader's Digest.]Jewellery in the Americas
Jewellery played a major role in the fate of the
Americas when the
Spanish established an empire to seize
South American gold. Jewellery making developed in the Americas 5,000 years ago in
Central and
South America. Large amounts of gold was easily accessible, and the
Aztecs and
Mayans created numerous works in the metal. Among the
Aztecs, only nobility wore gold jewellery, as it showed their rank, power and wealth. Gold jewellery was most common in the Aztec Empire and was often decorated with
feathers from
birds. The main purpose of Aztec jewellery was to draw attention, with richer and more powerful Aztecs wearing brighter, more expensive jewellery and clothes. Although gold was the most common and popular material used in Aztec jewellery, silver was also readily available throughout the American empires. In addition to adornment and status, the Aztecs also used jewellery in sacrifices to appease the gods. Priests also used gem encrusted daggers to perform animal and humen sacrifices.
[Farndon, J. 2001. 1,000 Facts on Modern History. Miles Kelly Publishing.]Another ancient American civilization with expertise in jewellery making was the
Maya. At the peak of their civilization, the Maya were making beautiful jewellery from
jade, gold, silver,
bronze and
copper. Maya designs were similar to those of the Aztecs, with lavish head dresses and jewellery. The Maya also traded in precious gems. However, in earlier times, the Maya had little access to metal, so made the majority of their jewellery out of bone or stone. Merchants and nobility were the only few that wore expensive jewellery in the Maya Empire, much the same as with the Aztecs.
[Reader's Digest Association. 1983. Vanished Civilisations. Reader's Digest.]In
North America, Native Americans used
shells, wood,
turquoise, and
soapstone, almost unavailable in South and Central America. The Native Americans utilized the properties of the stone and used it often in their jewellery, particularly in earlier periods. The turquoise was used in necklaces and to be placed in earrings. Native Americans with access to
oyster shells, often located in only one location in American, traded the shells with other tribes, showing the great importance of the body adornment trade in Northern America.
[Josephy Jr, A.M. 1994. 500 Nations: The Illustrated History of North American Indians. Alfred A. Knopf. Inc.].
Although initially of interest either as a curiosity or a source of raw material, jewellery designs from the Americas has come to play a significant role in modern jewellery (
see below).
Jewellery in the Pacific
Jewellery making in the
Pacific started later than in other areas due to relatively reecnt human settlement. Early jewellery was likely made of bone and wood, and has not survived. One notable exception to this is
New Zealand, where the
Māori create
Hei-tiki. The reason the hei-tiki is worn is not apparent, it may either relate to ancestral connections, as Tiki was the first Māori, or fertility, as there is a strong connection between this and Tiki. Hei-tikis are traditionally carved by hand from
nephrite or
bowenite; a lengthy and spiritual process.
The
jewellery as art movement, spearheaded by artisans such as
Robert Lee Morris, has kept jewellery on the leading edge of artistic design. Influence from other cultural forms is also evident; one example of this is
bling-bling style jewellery, popularized by hip-hop and rap artists in the early 21st century.
The advent of new materials, such as plastics,
Precious Metal Clay (PMC) and different colouring techniques, has led to increased variety in styles. Other advances, such as the development of improved
pearls harvesting by people such as
Kokichi Mikimoto, and the development of improved quality artificial gemstones such as
moissanite (a
synthetic diamond) has placed jewellery within the economic grasp of a much larger segment of the population. The late 20th century saw the blending of European design with oriental techniques such as
Mokume-gane.
Tim McCreight, an eminent authour and silversmith, cites the following as the primary innovations in the decades stadling the year 2000: "
Mokume-gane, hydraulic die forming, anti-clastic
raising,
fold-forming,
reactive metal anodizing, shell forms,
PMC,
photoetching, and [use of]
CAD/CAM."
[McCrieght, Tim. "What's New?" Metalsmith Spring 2006, Vol. 26 Issue 1, p42-45, 4p ]Among early 21st century developments, several jewellers have experimented with ephemeral edible jewellery; including necklaces made of bread and silver rings encrusted with crystalized sugar.
[Tanguy, Sarah. "Edible Jewelry." Metalsmith, Spring 2005, Vol. 25 Issue 2, p14-15, 2p, 7c. The food-related work of six jewellers is explored in this article, the examples cited created by Maru Almeida and Charles Lewton-Brain respectively.]It can be difficult to determine where jewellery leaves off and
body modification takes over.
Padaung women in
Myanmar place large golden rings around their necks. From as early as 5 years old, girls are introduced to their first neck ring. Over the years, more rings are added. In addition to the twenty-plus pounds of rings on her neck, a woman will also wear just as many rings on her calves too. At their extent, some necks modified like this can reach 10-15 inches long; the practice has obvious health impacts, however, and has in recent years declined from cultural norm to tourist curiosity.
[Packard, M. 2002. Ripley's Believe it or not: Special Edition. Scholastic Inc. 22.]. Tribes related to the Paduang, as well as other cultures throughout the world, use jewellery to stretch their earlobes, or enlarge ear piercings. In the Americas,
labrets have been worn since before
first contact by
innu and
first nations peoples of the northwest coast
[Moss, Madonna L. "George Catlin among the Nayas: Understanding the practice of labret wearing on the Northwest Coast." Ethnohistory Winter99, Vol. 46 Issue 1, p31, 35p ].
Lip plates are worn by the African
Mursi and
Sara people, as well as some South American peoples.
In the late 20th century, the influence of
modern primitivism led to many of these practices being incorporated into western subcultures. Many of these practices rely on a combination of body modification and decorative objects; thus keeping the distinction between these two types of decoration blurred. As with other forms of jewellery, the crossing of cultural boundaries is one of the more significant features of the artform in the early 21st century,
In line with the significance rings and amulets have played historically, it is not unusual that this should have been copied in fiction. Perhaps the most well-known example is
J.R.R. Tolkien's
The Lord of the Rings trilogy. The
Green Lantern graphic novel is another common example.
Computer role-playing games also commonly use rings, bracelets, and other jewellery as objects embued with special powers.
*
List of jewellery types*
Costume jewellery*
Fashion*
Gemstone*
Goldsmithing*
Human physical appearance*
Jewellery cleaning*
Silversmithing*
Murano glass*
Murano beads
*Borel, F. 1994. The Splendor of Ethnic Jewelry: from the Colette and Jean-Pierre Ghysels Collection.
New York: H.N. Abrams. (ISBN 0810929937).
*Evans, J. 1989. A History of Jewellery 1100-1870. (ISBN 0486261220).
*Nemet-Nejat, Karen Rhea 1998. Daily Life in Ancient Mesopotamia.
Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. (ISBN 0313294976).
*Tait, H. 1986. Seven Thousand Years of Jewellery.
London: British Museum Publications. (ISBN 0714120340).
*
History of Jewellery throughout Time*
Extensive Glossary of Jewellery terms*
Types and Forms of Ancient Jewelry from Central Asia (IV BC-IV AD)*
Royal Jewellery and famous Gems
