2013/07/16

The Eras and Periods of Jewellery

The history of jewellery is quite interesting. As people look back on its roots, they would find it amusing that jewellery has gone a long way. Jewellery was believed to have started in Africa, when people used different kinds of materials to make trinkets that served as protection when they wear it. These materials include horns and teeth of animals, shells, stones, twigs and all other materials that can be found in the wild. These people believed that wearing jewellery added certain levels of power to the person. Different cultures had a variety of beliefs with regards to wearing jewellery and were eventually spread to different land areas or countries.

Jewellery did not just act as a simple ornament. It also had different functions and purposes. During the early days of jewellery, it was prominently made to be used as amulets and talismans to drive away evil spirits. It eventually evolved from being an amulet to becoming a healing tool. The people before believed that wearing different kinds of jewellery, such as rings or necklaces, would help them set their mood or heal them from various sicknesses. The use of jewellery continued to be diverse through time. Today, it is considered to be very influential to society especially in determining rank, wealth, and power. It is also used by people to express certain feelings and emotions such as feelings of love, remorse and others.

The journey and innovation of jewellery is pretty unique. Each era had its own share of thoughts and contribution on how people perceive or look at jewellery today. The Egyptians were actually the ones who first established jewellery making as a profession. They honed their skills and developed techniques to create different designs and styles of jewellery. Since they are the earliest developers of jewellery, they also carried the belief that jewellery should be worn for protection. They also considered that jewellery contained powers. The Romans and Greeks had a different take on this. They didn’t believe that jewellery had powers but rather they used them as cultural symbols. They created jewellery to symbolize legends and Gods.

The Romans and Greeks continued to develop jewellery craftsmanship until the Middle Ages. This era particularly used jewellery to showcase the Christian culture. Different monasteries produced different kinds of jewellery that were used for trade. This profited the monasteries financially. There were a lot of guilds for jewellery that were established during the Middle Ages. They aided jewellers in their craft by imposing different standards to improve the quality in jewellery making. The use and belief of people about jewellery also changed over the years. During the Renaissance period, jewellery was believed to be symbols of wealth and power. People who wore jewellery like a special pair of antique earrings or a classic diamond ring were believed to belong to the higher echelons of society. This belief was carried over until the present day.


The trends in jewellery continue to grow over the years. Antique jewellery is one of the favorite pieces chosen by people today because of its uniqueness. Acquiring antique jewellery involves different responsibilities especially in preserving them. These types of jewellery have garnered its own value and are treasured widely today. There are varied designs from Kalmar Antiques on rings, genuine art deco rings, earrings, necklaces and other jewellery pieces of the past. We are Kalmar Antiques Pty Ltd - the foremost dealer of Antique and Fine Modern Jewellery in Australia.

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