Monthly Archives: October 2010

The History Of Earring

Early Earring

Earring

Earrings are jewelry attached to the ear through a piercing in the earlobe or some other external part of the ear (except in the case of clip earrings, which clip onto the lobe). Earrings are worn by both sexes. In western cultures, earrings have traditionally been worn primarily by women, although in recent decades, ear piercing has also become popular among men in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

Ear piercing has been a part of human culture ever since the earliest hunter-gatherer tribes. Though the phrase “ear piercing” most often refers to a single hole in the earlobe, there are at least eight other locations for the ear to be pierced. There is the helix of the ear, also called the “cartilage” (an inaccurate term, as the entire ear is made of cartilage), which is the most common place to get a piercing, aside from the lobe. All piercings in the upper part of the ear are referred to as cartilage piercings.

The process of having your cartilage pierced is usually more elaborate and painful than a piercing in the lobe. Earrings, studs, and loops for ear piercings are made out of a wide variety of materials. These include metal, plastic, wood, stone, and glass. Many earrings are fairly cheap, and can be bought almost anywhere. Other earrings are expensive, especially if they have been crafted using rare, high quality materials, such as gold, silver, platinum, and EGL loose diamonds or other precious stones.

In recorded history, earrings have been traced back to the ancient city of Perspolis, Persia, where the illustrations on the walls depict soldiers wearing earrings. The oldest earrings ever discovered were crafted in 2500 BC Iraq. During the Dark Ages, when most of the populace was impoverished, the popularity of earrings and other pieces of jewelry sharply declined. As nations rose again, especially during the Roman Empire, jewelry was crafted and worn with gusto as a sign of status and luxury. The popularity of earrings also largely depended on the fashions that prevailed at the time.

During the 1850s, earrings lost popularity once again. Hair was tied behind the head, covering the ears, or bonnets and hats were worn. In addition, the religious and social sentiments of the time associated earrings with heathens, vanity, and excess. With the 1920s came the advent of the clip-on earring, causing ear piercing to fall more out of favor. However, during this time, small groups of males were fond of piercing their ears. Sailors especially saw earrings as a symbol of their seafaring adventures.

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The History Of Brooch

The Brooches

Brooch

A brooch also known in ancient times as a fibula, is perhaps the oldest type of jewelry. When man first took to wearing something more than a loin cloth, there emanated the necessity of holding the cloth together.

Over time, the appearance of brooch evolved and was slowly refined by craftsmen. The next advancement in this accessory, after the thorns, was the safety pin mechanism. There was the ornament which was attached to the cloth by a pin and a spring made everything work smoothly.

The next huge step on design came during the time of the Byzantines. They had a passion for color and this was carried over to their designs. For the first time, brooches came in bright colors with intricate designs. Soon after, it became a hot item during trades and was sought after by many.

Years later, the brooch saw even more improvements as its size grew which meant there was more surface area for designers to work with. Very intricate designs were finally possible and artists and craftsmen used it to the fullest extent. For some people, symbols, family crests and other meaningful patterns were made into brooches which also boosted its reputation amongst the people and most especially the elite.

It is usually made of metal, often silver or gold but sometimes bronze or some other material. Brooches are frequently decorated with enamel or with gemstones and may be solely for ornament (as in the stomacher) or sometimes serve a practical function as a fastening, perhaps for a cloak.

The earliest known brooches are from the Bronze Age. As fashions in brooches changed rather fast, they are important chronological indicators.

There are several distinct types of brooches, not only in design, but in the fastening mechanism. The earliest known of these was the “safety-pin” form. This brooch had a pin, hinge, spring and bow all in one place. If a brooch is not a bow shaped, but round it is called “annular”. A “discoidal” brooch has a solid plaque or ornamental face with a simple pin and hook in the back. The “pen annular” pin was developed by the Celts and had a gap in the ring.

The early Christian period made a great advance in its effect on brooches throughout the fifth and sixth centuries. Its influence brought the addition of symbols and inscriptions to the necessary brooch, helping along with the Byzantines, to push the brooch towards its ornamental character.

In Ireland from the ninth to the thirteenth century, the pen annular reached its point of perfection. This is evidenced in the Tara brooch, beautifully decorated gold with enamels and cabochon stones. The pin of the pen annular always pointed upwards when worn. Then the ring was twisted to hold the pin in place with the pressure of the material.

The nineteenth century brooch took on many looks, as did the rest of the jewelry created. Early in the century, brooches began to look like the lace that many of them held, with mixed wire-work and fancy stones. Later, the vogue was a brooch made with pavé turquoise and tiny seed pearls threaded on horsehair. Throughout the next century, brooches, as with all jewels, closely followed the latest fashion.

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The History Of Necklace

Ancient Nacklace

Necklace

The necklace is a piece of jewelry that can be traced back throughout history as being worn by both men and women. They were often used as ways to make a distinction among many cultures.

Historians and archeologists have discovered that the necklace originated maybe forty thousand years before originally believed. In South Africa they have excavated a cave that had over 41 mollusks that were strung as possible neck jewelry nearly 75,000 years ago. At that time, people were decorating themselves with mollusk necklaces. Later, necklaces made of stones, bones, shells and animal teeth became popular. After the discovery of metals, gold, silver and a variety of other metals were used to make eye-catching necklaces for both men and women

Later, in 2500 B.C., necklaces were being made from gold. These gold choker and adornments were discovered in Ur. Later Sumerian’s began using beaded neck jewelry using examples of colored stones, copper and other metals.

The ancient Egyptians were more evolved. They grew from simple stringed bead necklaces to the more complicated patterns. They also had the broad collar and pectoral type necklaces that both men and women wore, especially the wealthy and royalty. Many of these necklaces were buried with them. These necklaces were often richly ornamented and were a big part of the dress attire.

There are numbers of necklace types that we can recognize:

Bib necklace; A bib necklace is made multiple strands of stepped pearls.
Choker; 35 centimetres (14 in) to 43 centimetres (17 in) long and sits high on the neck.
Princess necklace; A princess necklace is 45 centimetres (18 in) to 50 centimetres (20 in) long. It is between choker and matinee length.
Sharktooth; sharktooth necklace is a necklace with a shark tooth attached.
Sautoir or rope necklace; A sautoir or rope necklace is any necklace longer than opera length.
Uniform necklace; A uniform necklace consists of pearls that appear to be all the same size, although normally there is a slight difference towards the ends so they appear to be in proportion.

Gold was abundant during Alexander the Great period of ruling the Greek Empire. They used gold to make necklaces and many other types of jewelry for many centuries.

Now the Ancient Romans frowned on wearing jewelry. There were laws that dictated how much gold a woman could wear or be buried with. During the first century, the Roman style of jewelry started using gemstones cut in circular or rectangular shapes.

Later on, it became popular for women to wear many necklaces at once. This would indicate her level of wealth or her class. For a few years, the popularity of necklaces waned until the late 14th century when they regained popularity. Now necklaces are popular among all classes of people.

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The History Of Ring

Couple Ring

Ring

Ring, or sometimes being known as finger ring, is a circular band which is wore as a typical ornamental jewelry which is usually wore in our finger. The same circular bands that also worn as an ornamental we know, like arm ring and neck ring.

Rings are worn by both men and women and can be of any quality. Rings can be made of metal, plastic, wood, bone, glass, gemstone, iron, chopper, silver, gold and other materials. They may be set with a “stone” of some sort, which is often a precious or semi-precious gemstone such as ruby, sapphire or emerald, but can also be of almost any material.

Dated back to the early begin of the history or ring, the custom of giving and receiving rings was begin over 4,800 years. The fourth digit or ring finger of the hand has become the customary place to wear a wedding ring in much of the world. It stems from a 16th-century in Tudor belief that the left-handed ring finger was connected by a vein directly to the heart; thus, wearing a ring on the third finger demonstrated that the wearer was in a relationship.

Some cultures have rings typically associated with them. Cultures such as Native Americans use silver and turquoise in their jewelry. Early Christians used the Greek symbol, the Icthus, which resembles a fish. One of the best known is the Irish Claddagh that also has an intriguing story attached to it. Richard Joyce was among the crew of a fishing boat from the village of Claddagh, Ireland that was captured, he was to have been married that very same week. During slavery, Richard Joyce was put to the trade of Goldsmith-ing. Through the years of capture neither married. Richard Joyce created a ring for his love with a heart for love, a crown for loyalty, and two hands.
After Joyce escaped capture, he returned to the village of Claddagh and was overjoyed to see his love again and to know she had never married. She always knew he would return to her. He gave her the ring that has become known as the Claddagh ring. If the Claddagh is worn on the right hand with the crown inward (toward the wrist) the heart is not yet committed. If it is worn on the right hand with the crown turned outward the wearer is committed to someone. Finally if it is worn on the left hand with the crown outward it means “Let our love and friendship reign forever, never to be separated.”

Rings are worn for a variety of reasons including adornment. There are rings given as a reward for a job well done such as the Super Bowl victory.
They are given to represent commitment as in engagements and marriages. Women religious to signify their commitment to God also wear rings.

Rings have some typical shapes and styles, and some of each are have different meaning. For instance, Flat wedding bands are the simplest form of ring that can be made. A flat wedding band basically consists of a strip of metal that is bent around into a loop and joined where the ends meet. Half-round rings, also called D-shape rings, are flat wedding bands that are filed half-round on the outside. Eternity rings are rings with stones, usually diamonds, of the same cut and size, set in one row all around the ring. The stones are usually round or square, and the setting is usually either claws or a channel setting. When the stones do not continue around the entire ring, but stop halfway around the finger, it is called a half-eternity ring.

Some rings also have usage meaning for the wearer, like, Aqiq ring; A carnelian or Agate ring worn by some Muslims, especially Shi’ah, in imitation of Muhammad and the twelve Imams. Engagement ring; A traditional ring worn by a woman to indicate her engagement to be married. Friendship ring; Friendship rings are used to symbolize a close relationship that has no romantic undertone. Thumb ring; This largest of finger rings is worn on the thumb primarily for fashion, but is also worn as a symbol of will power or internal energy, sexuality, and other beliefs or attitudes.

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The Magnificent Star Sapphire

Star Sapphire

Star Sapphire

A star sapphire is a type of sapphire that exhibits a star-like phenomenon known as asterism. Star sapphires contain intersecting needle-like inclusions (often the mineral rutile, a mineral composed primarily of titanium dioxide that cause the appearance of a six-rayed “star”-shaped pattern when viewed with a single overhead light source.

Naturally forming Star Sapphires are usually more expensive, especially if the Star Sapphire is deep and rich in color. Sapphires, as well as Star Sapphires can come in a variety of colors including most notably blue, but also green, colorless, orange, brown, purple and violet.

The word Sapphire comes from the Latin word saphirus meaning blue. Sapphires and Star Sapphires were prized possessions of kings and queens. They were used for talisman and for their perceived medicinal qualities. It should be noted that red Sapphires do exist, however they have the privilege of being called Rubies.

The Black Star of Queensland is believed to be the largest star sapphire that has ever been mined, and it weighs 733 carats. The Star of India (weighing 563.4 carats) is thought to be the second-largest star sapphire, and it is currently on display at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.


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The Brightfull Spinel

Spinel Gemstone

Spinel

One of the most beautiful and rarest gemstones available today is the Spinel. While you might be able to find a gemstone called Spinel at your local jewelry stone, it is probably synthetic and only loosely based on the beautiful qualities of true Spinel.

Pure spinel is white, but impurities give it a wide range of colors. Almost all colors are used in jewelry, but the most valuable and popular color is the deep red. These red gems closely resemble rubies, and the two may be difficult to distinguish. In fact, until the late 19th century, there was no distinction between ruby and red spinel, as they look identical and are found in the same localities. Nowadays, distinctions can be made through hardness and x-ray tests. Many famous old “rubies” were found to be Spinel. The enormous “ruby” that forms the centerpiece of the royal crown of England (the Black Prince’s Ruby) was determined to be spinel.

Spinel was usually associated with Rubies, due to the fact that large red Spinel were found in the same mines that Rubies were mined at. Since they had the same characteristics and practically looked the same to the naked eye, they were often believed to be Rubies. Many Spinels were worn by kings and queens throughout history and even are included on many priceless royal artifacts such as the Black Prince’s Ruby, the 170 carat red Spinel that is set in the Imperial State Crown of England and a Spinel is also part of some of the British Crown Jewels. Henry V even wore Spinel as part of a battle helmet.

Besides red, Spinel comes in a wide variety of beautiful colors including green, blues, purples, orange, pink and a very prized hot pink. Spinel is associated with many other gemstones including tourmaline and garnets. They are all made from the elements iron, chromium, zinc and magnesium, however they have differing amounts. Some of these minerals can even include nickel and aluminum. Usually these differences will create specific colors and attributes.

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