Jewelry

Jewellery (Jewelry in American spelling); comprises ornamental objects worn by persons, typically made with gems and precious metals. Costume jewellery is made from less valuable materials. However, jewellery can and has been made out of almost every kind of material.

The word 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.

Some cultures have a practice of keeping large amounts of wealth stored in the form of jewellery. Jewellery can also be symbolic, as in the case of Christians wearing a crucifix in the form of jewellery, or, as is the case in many Western cultures, married people wearing a wedding ring.

Jewellery in various forms has been made and worn by both sexes in almost every (if not every) human culture, on every inhabited continent. Personal adornment seems to be a basic human tendency.

Types

Materials and methods

Jewellery, particularly when made with precious materials, is generally considered valuable and desirable. A variety of precious gemstones, coins or other precious items can be used, often set into precious metals. Common metals used for jewellery include gold, platinum or silver. Most gold alloys used in jewellery range from 10K to 21K gold, while platinum alloys range from 900 (90% pure) to 950 (95.0% pure). The silver used in jewellery is often sterling silver.

Common gemstones that are used include diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and opals. Dozens more are also commonly used.

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; and natural clay and plasticine clays, such as polymer clay.

Beads are commonly used in jewellery. These may be made of many different substances including glass, gemstones, 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.

Among uncommonly used materials are fish scales (Video clip).

Timeline

This is a timeline of jewellery production from the first uses of metal in history to the Renaissance.

• 7000 BC - Uses of copper in Anatolia, Iran and Eastern Europe.
• 5000 BC - Uses of copper in Egypt.
• 4000 BC - Smelting technology for copper in Egypt and Iran.
• 3450 BC - Use of natural zinc/copper alloy in Egypt.
• 3500 BC - Gold makes an appearance in Egyptian jewellery.
• 3000 BC - Egypt and Iran makeing simple hammered iron beads
• 3000 BC - The Middle East employ semi-mass-production
• 2000 BC - First signs of the swagging technique
• 2600 BC - Beaded wires began to be used.
• 2500 BC - Egyptians using copper/lead alloys.
• 2500 BC - True iron production technology in Near East.
• 2500 BC - The intentional addition of silver and copper to gold.
• 2500 BC - Gold wires are characterised by seam lines that follow a spiral path along the wire.
• 2000 BC - Use of patterned punches
• 1500 BC - Earplugs and earrings become popular in Egypt.
• 1400 BC - Egypt Amarna period, using resin and mud for repoussé backing.
• 1400 BC - Deliberate addition of zinc to copper in Canaan.
• 1400 BC - Philistines have iron.
• 1400 BC - Very copper rich gold alloys popular in Egypt.
• 1000 BC - Persian sheet bronze work 0.05mm thick.
• 1000 BC - The start of true engraving.
• 900 BC - The Greeks have iron.
• 700 BC - World's oldest coinage in Lydia.
• 575 BC - In Greece, jewellery is still very rare.
• 500 BC - Hafted hammers were being used in some parts.
• 500 BC - Iron in use in Britain
• 400 BC - Greeks using Beeswax for filler in repoussé.
• 350 BC - Use of combined punches and dies of bronze.
• 325 BC - Animal or human-headed hoop earrings were popular.
• 300 BC - Diadems are first seen.
• 300 BC - Red Coral popular in Celtic jewellery.
• AD 50 - Start of the Roman period, where addition of silver to gold becomes almost unknown.
• AD 100 - Sulphur fills hollow gold items throughout the Roman Empire.
• AD 150 - Tin rings found in Nubia
• AD 300 - Lead becomes more common in places.
• AD 400 - Pewter jewellery is made.
• AD 400 - A shale die is found in Britain.
• AD 1500 - The Renaissance

See also

• Artisan
• Art Nouveau jewellery
• Beauty
• Costume jewellery
• Fashion
• Gemological Institute of America The Non-Profit Educational Institution of the Jewelry Industry.
• Gemstone
• Goldsmithing
• Human physical appearance
• Jewellery cleaning
• Silversmithing

Bibliography

• Borel, France. (1994). "The Splendor of Ethnic Jewelry: from the Colette and Jean-Pierre Ghysels Collection." New York: H.N. Abrams.
• Evans, Joan. (1989). "A history of jewellery 1100-1870."
• Tait, Hugh. (1986). "Seven Thousand years of jewellery." London: British Museum Publications.

This clothing or fashion-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.