Victorian Jewelry: The Romantic Period 1837 to 1860 

PART TWO

1. Pieces crafted from beautiful Coral, Mother-of-Pearl and Seed Pearls from the Sea. Unique pieces crafted from "Jet" a fossilized wood from the Jurassic period and "Hairwork" a very unique and detailed jewelry created from Human Hair.

1. Antique Gutta Percha Victorian Bracelet Hinged Bangle 14K Gold Antique Jewelry 1850s Mourning Jewelry....https://www.etsy.com/shop/boylerpf.
2. 1843: Gerrard becomes British Crown Jeweler
   1846: Riker, Tay & Searing founded in Newark, NJ, becomes Riker Bros. in 1892.
   1847: Cartier founded in Paris.
3. 

1860's LOVE 9K Antique Gold Locket Necklace Rose Gold Victorian Locket Oval Floral Engraved Wedding Anniversary Birthday Gift Jewelry....https://www.etsy.com/shop/AntiqueLockets

Coral was very popular during the Romantic Period and remained that way until c.1865.

Usually Coral was worn in its original branch form, which was a custom in Italy to protect children and to ward off the evil eye.

Victorian women loved their Coral Bead jewelry. Beads come in many sizes and colors and were strung around necks in great volume.

Coral is an organic gemstone which is cut from a mass of skeletons, secreted by polyps as a calcareous habitat. Much like the trade in ivory, the trade in old coral is still acceptable and many coral artifacts are of historic value.

1848: Balmoral Castle in Scotland purchased by Queen Victoria.

1848: Gold Discovered in California. 

1848: Thomas H. Lowe of Birmingham introduces Rolled Gold Plating process (A.K.A. Gold Filled) to Providence, R.I. manufactures.

1860s Georgian - Authentic Sterling Silver Paste Necklace ~ Victorian Antique...https://www.etsy.com/shop/FindMeTreasures

Mother-of-Pearl and Seed Pearls were used extensively in creating intricate jewelry pieces with beautiful Flowers, Leaves an Scrolls.
The Victorians loved Flowers and this became one of the most popular Seed Pearl designs.
Seed Pearls were used in many jewelry pieces including the framing of large elegant gemstones to enhance the design.

Seed Pearls are very small in size; less than one-quarter grain in weight, usually smaller than 2mm in size and not perfectly round. Seed pearls are imported from India and China. Historically Seed Pearls occur naturally.

Mother-of-Pearl is a nacreous, lustrous. iridescent lining of the shell of a mollusk that can be carved and cut for jewelry and other decorative purposes.

1849: California Gold Rush.
1849: The Safety Pin invented and patented by W.Hunt.
1849: Gold Electroplating patented.
1849: Opals first discovered in Australia, The first with play of color in 1863.

ANTIQUE 1870 10KT Victorian chatelaine brooch gold taille d epergne watch pin....https://www.etsy.com/shop/vintagesparkles 

Mourning and Sentimental jewelry flourished during the Romantic period.

Through the 16th and 18th centuries Memento mori jewelry was popular, but became even more so after the passing of the Queen's Albert.

Typically, Mourning jewelry is traditionally worn when someone is in mourning.

Materials typically used in the creating of Mourning jewelry are Black Enamel, Jet, Onyx, Human Hair, Glass, Vulcanite and Gutta-Percha.

Human Hair was also used in the creation of Sentimental jewelry, created in a painterly style to depict Prince of Wales Feathers, Ships, Landscapes and other Sentimental subjects.

The art form of Hairwork was so prevalent that a life-size portrait of Queen Victoria made entirely of hair was constructed for the Paris Exposition of 1855.

Vulcanite is compressed (vulcanized)rubber. Vulcanite was a less expensive material than jet and used for similar jewelry items.

Gutta-percha is a dark rubbery, organic substance derived from tropical trees.

1850: High tariff placed on Foreign Goods imported into the USA.

1850: Tube shaped (Trombone) Safety Catch patented by Charles Rowley of Birmingham, England.

1850: Brooches with swiveling compartments introduced.

1850: Garnet-Glass Doublets first introduced.

Antique Victorian 14k Black Onyx Earrings, Antique Yellow Gold Circa 1870 Mourning Earrings, Wreath Motif, Mourning Jewelry...https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheEdenCollective

Jet was being used to create Chains, Beads and Carvings for a Fashionable Mourning period.

Imitations such as French Jet, cheaply made glass imitations were also available.

Jet formed from Fossilized Wood of a Jurassic Period Tree that upon dying, often ended up as driftwood that was swept out to sea. Under great pressure for millions of years and with all of the requisite elements, ordinary driftwood is transformed into the gem known as Jet.

1851: Gold and Diamonds first discovered in Australia.

1851: Hard Rubber (Vulcanite) patented by Nelson Goodyear.

1851: Artificial Aventurine (Goldstone) exhibited at Crystal Palace.

1851: Edward Moore becomes Director of Tiffay & Co.

1851: First International Exhibition, The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations. Held at the Crystal Palace in London.

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