“Well,” you may ask, “isn’t jewelry adoring by it’s very character?” To some degree this is correct, however we wear jewelry for every number of purposes that are not passionate… to appear sophisticated, to appear professional, to amaze our associates and neighbors. So what about the romance of jewelry? In this case I’m talking concerning romance in a larger sense than simply relations. “A quality or feeling of mystery, enthusiasm, and isolation from daily life” Romantic jewelry is that jewelry that makes you feel exceptional, special, like a princess or a prince. That jewelry that takes you out of your standard hum drum life each time you put it on. I adore silver and platinum and there are other metals (titanium comes to mind) that create wonderful jewelry, but there is nothing resembling the romance of gold. To wear gold is to wear the jewelry of kings and queens. In ancient Egypt only the pharaohs and those mainly favored by the pharaohs were allowed to wear gold. Other jewels that move feelings of romance are pearls, emeralds and rubies… and, certainly, for lots of people, diamonds. By some means however diamonds don’t seem to have the similar warmth and romance as the other stones. Much of the romance that has been generated around diamonds is do to de Beers in the near the beginning part of the 20th century instituting a exceptional and very effective publicity campaign… so I’ll leave diamonds for another day. Conversely pearls… Pearls feel amazing against your skin. To look intensely into a well pearl is to look into eternity. Pearls have been respected in all time periods and all cultures. Historically baroque pearls (large unevenly shaped pearls) were used to make great and excellent jewelry by embellishing them with gold an gems. Regularly these took the shape of Neptune or other greek gods, sirens, good-looking females and animals. The Canning Jewel in the Victoria and Albert museum is a popular and complex use of a baroque as the pedestal for a good-looking merman. Black pearls, especially Tahitian black pearls have turned into very popular in current years. They come in a range of colors from stunning purples and greens, through pinks to classy browns. All are delightful and the choice of colors gives them a huge deal of flexibility in picking just the right pearl for your outfit and temper. The most stunning black pearl necklace I’ve noticed was from Morrison’s a tiny manufacturing jeweler in Berkeley. The pearls were set in a rainbow strung together so that each color melted into the 1 next to it — spectacular. (By the way, if you wear pearls, do wear them against your skin, it is good for them, but be sure that you do not wear any body spray, perfume or cream, as a minimum not where it may contact your pearls.) Emeralds and rubies are traditionally the emperor and empress of gemstones. Perhaps it is their vibrant colors that inspired our associates. Certainly that bright blood red and cool serpent green are hard to ignore. Even nowadays emeralds and rubies of the same size and quality are more pricey than equal diamonds. In Victorian times colored gems were used to spell out love messages. For e.g a piece of jewelry may have these gems in sequence: LOVE: Lapis, Opal, Vermeil and Emerald. REGARD: Ruby, Emerald, Garnet, Amethyst, Ruby and Diamond. The form of jewels too could harbor a romantic message. Hearts and clasped hands, hands holding a heart (Claddagh) and cupids are self illustrative, but certain styles are a little more subtle. For a lot of cultures, including the Romans and the Victorians, snakes were a sign of long-term love. Prince Albert gave Queen Victoria a snake engagement ring — the beginning of a long and celebrated marriage. Fascinatingly lizards and frogs were (and possibly still are) also symbols of wedded pleasure. Perhaps this describes the long-lasting fame of jewelry depicting this wiggly creatures. Jewelry in the shape of flowers may as well be symbolic. To cite Ophelia “There’s rosemary, that’s for memory; pray, love, consider: and there’s pansies. Other flowers generally found in jewelry are daisies for innocence, roses for the growth and continuation of love and bouquets expressing the commingling and compatibility of marriage. When you are considering the perfect present from that next anniversary, rather than the regular “anniversary ring” how about a more romantic bouquet pendant? So the next time you are rooting through your gemstone box before that exceptional tryst or looking for the ideal present for the perfect lover, consider the emblematic romance of jewelry and gemstones.
Tags: diamond direct, diamond earings, diamond earrings, diamonds direct, white gold diamond stud earrings