Georgian Jewellery
In terms of Georgian jewellery history, the period spanned from 1714 to 1830 encompassing the reign of George I, George II, George III and George IV (many consider ‘true’ Georgian period to exclude George IV’s reign). During this era there were many developments in technology and fashion, both of which had a huge impact on the jewellery trends of the time.
Mourning Jewellery
During the 16th and 17th centuries, mourning jewellery was primarily a ‘memento mori’, a reminder to the wearers of the inevitability of their own deaths. The jewellery was generally in the form of coffins, skulls, and skeletons. It was only later that memento mori jewellery came to be worn in memory of specific individuals. This came about especially after the time of the execution of Charles I when Royalists wore brooches or rings with the initials CR, or even enamelled portraits of their monarch
Ancient Jewellery
It is estimated that humans have been wearing jewellery for 75,000 years. Initially, of course, resources and craftsmanship for creating jewellery were very limited; therefore many items were made of basic materials such as shell or bone, even mammoth tusk. Over time, skills and experience evolved as humanity discovered new materials, eventually taking us to the beautiful jewellery we know today.
Miniature Portrait Jewellery
The definition of a miniature portrait is a painting of the subject’s head and shoulders that does not exceed five inches in height or width. Miniatures were very popular before the invention of photography.
It is rumoured that the first British miniatures were produced by Lucas Horneborte for Henry VIII. For those of you who watched “The Tudors”, the BBC adaptation of Henry VII and his wives, you will recall King Henry VIII possessed a locket containing a miniature of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, and also that Anne discovered his affair with Lady Jane Seymour after she found her in possession of a locket containing a miniature of King Henry.
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