The History Of Jewelry:

The history of jewelry - throughout time - man and woman has sought to make themselves stand out from the crowd. Even animals will preen and parade around in a mating ritual. It is a natural occurence for both man and beast. Early man decorated himself with whatever was available - sometimes seashells on a string, fish bones or even animal claws. The documented examples of  "jewelry" can be dated back to around 20,000 BC.

Early man used whatever that might make him stand out. We are not much different - only our available ornaments are much better and more diverse.

Jewelry has had many roles throughout the years - during the various periods, it has always been used to establish a certain stature in society. It has also been used as religious offerings, decorations for the church and clergy, certain stones have been deemed to ward off disease and ill fortune. Jewelry has played many roles throughout mankind's existence. Quite honestly, it still does. What young executive on the rise does not want to display a Rolex or other show of success? Yes, jewelry still plays a major role in our society and will continue to do so.

The history of "costume jewelry" - many sources credit Coco Chanel (born in 1883 as Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel) as being the first to introduce costume jewelry as an acceptable accessory. In 1910, she opened a hatshop (in France) and in 1913, she began designing and making dresses. In 1919, she opened a fashion house where ladies might go and be decked out from head to foot with clothing and accessories - including real and beautiful costume jewelry. This wonderful lady also developed and released the ever popular Chanel No. 5 Perfume in @1923. When World War II was imminent - she retired @1939 but came out of retirement in @1959 to once again dominant the fashion world. She left us a wonderful legacy when she passed in 1971.

Many years ago, the Ziegfield Follies was an extraordinary show. Acts and ladies attired in costumes glittering in rhinestones parading around (much like what you would expect to see now at a Los Vegas Show). The use of these highly decorated costumes and accessories did wonders for the acceptance of glittery jewelry. As the demand for new and better costumes grew - it helped several jewelry companies to grow and flourish. Researh tells me that Hobe was a major contributor and supplier for the Follies. It was a good choice - Hobe designed and manufactured some outstanding pieces which we have had the good fortune to acquire.

Prior to this development - costume jewelry was mostly known as fake or imitation jewelry. The people designing were not considered to be true craftsmen. The Follies helped the industry gain a certain amount of acceptance.

Quite possibly - the biggest major development was Hollywood. As more and more stars began wearing these extravagent pieces in their films - the average person developed a desire for them. The developments in manufacturing costume jewelry had made it much cheaper and affordable for the average person. You could go to the movies and see your favorite star - leave the movie house and head for the department store and purchase a similar piece. You too could look like Elizabeth Taylor! Well, almost like Elizabeth Taylor.

Back during these time periods - the average person was not well traveled. Many never traveled over 100 miles from where they were born BUT - they had Hollywod and the movies to show us what was stylish. We could see what the beautiful people were wearing and - we wanted to be beautiful people too!

Sarah Coventry had an excellent marketing strategy. They had many of the popular and rising stars modeling their jewelry in all sorts of ads. You could scarcely open a magazine without seeing a major star adorned in lovely jewelry that you too could afford!

Costume jewelry was developed many years ago. Originally, it was still handmade - often times still set in gold. The onlt difference would be the stones or jewels. As far back as 3500 BC, man discovered that gold could be heated, hammered and shaped quite easily. Silver, copper and bronze metals were also used during this era.

In the era of kingdoms and holding court - a certain standard of opulence was expected. Gems were very expensive! Labor was naot a major concern. If it took weeks to fashion a stone - then so be it. Jewelers could be commisioned to produce these pieces for a fraction of the cost of real gems. Traveling with very valuable jewelry was not a good idea. The distance between kingdoms was often long and treacherous.

The story of Robin Hood comes to mind. I don't think there was a lot of giving to the poor going on but I do believe that a rich, gold and jewelry laden coach and entourage might find themselves suddenly surrounded by robbers and stripped of their valuables. Hence, the courtiers stil needed the flashy accessories demanded by their station but who could afford to replenish such expensive treasures?

Poor kingdoms could not afford actual gems but stil had to project a certain image - an industry was born. This jewelry was well made, still beautiful and often times was much more labor intensive because of fashioning and working of raw materials into a shiny replica of the original.

As discussed earlier, true gems were expensive and hard to acquire. An alternative was needed. How to imitate the luster and briliance of fine diamonds and gems? Finally, a process was developed where glass was ground to a powder. It could then be colored to simulate other gems or left uncolored for the diamond effect. It was then placed in a mold and kiln fired. The hardened paste could then be cut, shaped and polished into an acceptable replica. Countless hours were spent on these new gems but labor was cheap and many a cottage industry supplememted their meager incomes by producing these simulated treasures.

This method or paste was perfected by George Strass. Mr. Strass developed a glittering paste made from ground lead glass, potassium and other additives that could be used to replicate different transparent stones. This mixture brought a certain brilliance and capability to refract the available light that had not been seen before in simulated stones. He also developed formulas (by adding metal oxides and certain salts) to produce and simulate many other rare and valuable gemstones of the day. In honor of Mr. Strass - this method and resulting replicas are often called "Strass" or "Strass Glass". This was surely a milestone in the history of our present day treasures.

My favorite contributor to the evolvement of our modern day costume jewelry was/is Daniel Swarovski. He was born in Austria and was born into the industry. He followed his father into the trade but was not content the the slow, tedious process of producing these stones. After almost a decade of research and trial and error - Daniel managed to produce a machine that could cut this crystal (leaded glass) with more accuracy and precision than local craftsmen could ever hope to duplicate. A wonderful side benefit was that not only could these stones be cut with more precision but also could be produced far faster.

Instead of days or weeks to create the best possible stone - it could be reduced to a matter of minutes. Daniel Swarovski  had made a major accomplishment but was still not satisfied. He was still dependent on his suppliers for a fine quality crystal for his process. He began to experiment and finally developed his own recipe for a fine crystal glass. Ths particular recipe seemed to give a perfect facet and refraction combination.

What else could one man do to revolutionize his industry? What else was left? Well. there was one thing that bogged down the whole process. The stones were produced at what seemed like break neck speed BUT - these stones quite frequently had to have a foil backing applied,