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Antique Jewelry

Original antique jewelry

See our: Antique jewelry.

To know something about antique jewelry or antique jewellery one really has to dig into many (sometimes complex) factors. Some of these will be touched upon in the About Antique Jewelry section of the Adin website and in Adin's Antique Jewelry Glossary. Although we do not intend here to delve into matters in depth, the following chapters give a good idea on antique jewelry and what it's all about.

The word "antique" comes from the Latin word "antiquus", meaning "old" and the word "jewellery" (British spelling) or "jewelry" (American spelling) is a derivation of the word "jewel", which was anglicised from the Old French "jouel" some 800 years ago, in around the 13th century. The word "jouel" itself comes from the Latin word "jocale", meaning "plaything". Jewelry can be made out of almost every known material with the purpose to adorn nearly every part of the body.

Antique jewelry is jewelry that has reached an age of 100 years or more and that makes it a witness of a previous era in human history. It is in generally used for previously owned jewelry and for pieces of jewelry made in earlier (style-)periods and not necessarily pre-worn jewellery. It is not a dequalifying designation as many pieces of antique jewelry typically feature fine workmanship and high quality stones, as well as one-of-a-kind pieces.

Antique jewelry includes many decades or eras. Each era has many different designs. These eras include Georgian, Early Victorian, Mid-Victorian, Late Victorian, Arts and Crafts era, Art Nouveau, Edwardian, Art Deco and Retro.

The following is a recap of the most interesting antique jewelry subjects:

Antique jewelry and its function:
Jewelry are objects, whatever material they are made of, that we use to ornament ourselves. Whether put, pierced through, or hung on our body, their function is to show or pretend our status. It is obvious that ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Materials used in and for antique jewelry:
What materials do we use to make ourselves look prettier? 'Metals' is the obvious (though not exclusive) answer. These we can divide into: precious metals (gold, platinum, silver), non-precious metals ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Different alloys used in and for antique jewelry:
What is an alloy and what can you achieve by influencing it? Which alloy is better and which worse. Is it worth more or less etc.? An alloy is a mixture of different metals, which for jewelry has to contain ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Combination of metals used for antique jewelry:
The use of the different metals together isn't arbitrary, or at least not originally. About 2-300 years ago it was common for diamonds to be set in silver. Jewellers of that time believed that only a silver mounting ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Reasons for wearing antique jewelry now and in the past:
Jewellery is often created for a special occasion or reason to show that the wearer follows a certain sport, belongs to a certain club i.e. free masons, to a certain part, in memoriam etc. Or a special happening ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Laws and regulations concerning antique jewelry:
Around 1800 Napoleon abolished the guilds and left the regulations of gold and silverware to the legislator. But what was the role of the guilds? The guilds guaranteed the integrity of the concerned trades ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Hallmarks to be found on antique jewelry:
There are many (hall-)marks to be found in antique jewelry. Some 19 different sorts in all. The chance of finding them struck all together in one piece is non-existing. Normally there will be between two and five ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Designs of antique jewelry:
Over the years it was royalty who commissioned and set trends for the different fashions. Obediently followed by the nobility and bourgeoisie. The church too was a very important commissioner, although more ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Antique jewelry devided into style periods:
In this chapter on antique jewelry styles you will find an overview that shows the different antique jewelry styles and their names in the different countries over the ages ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Fakes and counterfeits in antique jewelry:
Not everything known as fake is actually a fake. There are many kinds of fakes that have an intrinsic value of their own. Take the original Russian silver object that may have a fake Fabergé mark ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Antique jewelry, birthstones, monthstones and healing power:
Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist traditions mingled with pagan legends led to the association of certain stones with different months, astrological signs, Tribes of Israel and Apostles ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Ring size comparison list for antique jewelry from various countries:
Here you will find an extensive list for the comparison of all ring sizes as used in all countries in their local units, both for new as for antique rings.
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Extensive antique jewelry glossary:
The Adin Antique Jewelry Glossary is an extensive explanatory list of subjects that are related to jewelry in general and antique jewelry in particular and is still growing every day ...
(Click the title to read more on this antique jewelry related subject)

Commonly misspelled antique jewellery terms


Want to know more about antique jewelry styles? Go to our antique jewelry style overview.

Select your category of
Antique Jewelry:

All our antique jewelry

antique rings
antique earrings
antique brooches
antique necklaces
antique pendants
antique lockets
antique slides
antique stickpins
antique pocket watches
antique cufflinks
antique signets
antique medals
antique buttons
antique walking gear
antique writing gear
antique chains
antique various
antique women accessories
antique men accessories
antique loose stones
antique bangles
antique bracelets
antique sewing utilities
antique brooche and pendant in one
antique crosses
antique silverware
antique long dangling earrings
antique bar brooches
antique bol chains
antique book accessories
antique buckles
antique chains with bows
antique long chains
antique charm bracelets
antique chatelaines
antique compass
antique double clips
antique stud earrings
antique long hanging earrings
antique fausse montre
antique fab keys
antique garment closure
antique key rings
antique miniatures
antique needle cases
antique orders
antique perfume bottles
antique pill boxes
antique seals and intaglios
antique sealing wax holders
antique shawl clips

antique jewelry with diamonds
antique jewelry with rubies
antique jewelry with sapphires
antique jewelry with emeralds

antique rings with rose cut diamonds
antique earrings with rose cut diamonds
antique brooches with rose cut diamonds
antique pendants with rose cut diamonds
antique pendants with diamonds
antique chains with rose cut diamonds
antique bangles with rose cut diamonds
antique bracelets with rose cut diamonds
antique combined brooch and pendant with rose cut diamonds
antique jewelry with rose cut diamonds

antique jewelry with pearls
antique jewelry with agate
antique jewelry with alexandrite
antique jewelry with amber
antique jewelry with amethyst
antique jewelry with aquamrine
antique jewelry with cornelian
antique jewelry with chrysophrase
antique jewelry with citrine
antique jewelry with English crystal
antique jewelry with garnet
antique jewelry with hematite
antique jewelry with jade
antique jewelry with jasper
antique jewelry with jet
antique jewelry with lapis lazuli
antique jewelry with layer stone
antique jewelry with malachite
antique jewelry with marcasite
antique jewelry with moonstone
antique jewelry with nephrite
antique jewelry with onyx
antique jewelry with opal
antique jewelry with paste
antique jewelry with peridot
antique jewelry with quartz
antique jewelry with rock crystal
antique jewelry with spinel
antique jewelry with strass
antique jewelry with tanzanite
antique jewelry with tiger eye
antique jewelry with topaz
antique jewelry with tourmaline
antique jewelry with turquoise
antique jewelry with natural zirkon
antique jewelry with starlite
antique jewelry with hyacint

antique jewelry with bone
antique jewelry with clay
antique jewelry with coral
antique jewelry with faiance
antique jewelry with glass
antique jewelry with horn
antique jewelry with iron
antique jewelry with ivory
antique jewelry with lavastone
antique jewelry with leather
antique jewelry with mica
antique jewelry with mother of pearl
antique jewelry with human hair
antique jewelry with human teeth
antique jewelry with porcelain
antique jewelry with silk
antique jewelry with turtle
antique jewelry with wood

antique jewelry with animal theme
antique jewelry with floral theme
antique jewelry with cameos
antique jewelry with heraldic theme
antique jewelry with human theme
antique jewelry with insect theme
antique jewelry with love theme
antique jewelry with luck theme
antique jewelry with marine theme
antique jewelry month related
antique jewelry with music theme
antique jewelry with mythological theme
antique jewelry with naval theme
antique jewelry with tassles
antique jewelry with dangles
antique jewelry with hidden spaces
antique jewelry with micro mosaic and pietra dura
antique jewelry with trembleuse
antique jewelry with script
antique jewelry with Arab text
antique jewelry with Chinese text
antique jewelry with Cyrilic text
antique jewelry with Greek text
antique jewelry with Hebrew text
antique jewelry with Hierogoglyphs
antique jewelry with Japanese text
antique jewelry with Latin text
antique jewelry with message
antique jewelry with question mark
antique jewelry with anchor motif
antique jewelry with arrow motif
antique jewelry with bell motif
antique jewelry with belt motif
antique jewelry with building motif
antique jewelry with cartoon motif
antique jewelry with Christmas motif
antique jewelry with wedding motif
antique jewelry with Baptism motif
antique jewelry with cooking and eating motif
antique jewelry with dance motif
antique jewelry with fairy tale motif
antique jewelry with flag motif
antique jewelry with historical motif
antique jewelry with landscape motif
antique jewelry with legends and myths motif
antique jewelry with transport motif
antique jewelry with mourning motif
antique jewelry with musical motif
antique jewelry with remembrance motif
antique jewelry with ribbon motif
antique jewelry with romantical motif
antique jewelry with bow motif
antique jewelry with sports and games motif
antique jewelry with sword motif
antique jewelry with tools motif
antique jewelry with war and peace motif
antique jewelry with whip motif
antique jewelry with comet motif
antique jewelry with moon motif
antique jewelry with star motif

red gold antique jewelry
yellow gold antique jewelry
platinum antique jewelry
silver and gold antique jewelry
silver antique jewelry

antique jewelry with wirework
antique jewelry with filigree and granules
antique jewelry with enamel
antique jewelry with plique ajour enamel
antique jewelry with fringes

Antique Jewelry Lecture
About Adin Antwerp
Jewelry Theme Search
Jewelry Glossary

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