Sparkling Earrings Made from Antique Elements with Garnets & Pearls

Earring fashions have always reflected women’s hairstyles as well as social sensibilities. Around 1870, for example, women wore very long, eye-catching gold earrings with their curls pinned back at the nape of the neck. By around 1890, long earrings were already considered inappropriate for everyday wear, and at most, women wore small diamond teardrops—perhaps because such jewellery would have seemed too obtrusive with the strict, updo hairstyles of those years. C. 1910, long earrings made a comeback, and paired with the emancipated bob cut of the Art Deco era, they became a truly revolutionary statement. Unfortunately, of all the pieces of jewellery from the past, earrings are the rarest to find. Whether because they were worn so often and so enthusiastically, or simply because, over the generations, one earring from a pair was frequently lost. So what can be done? In the case of the earrings presented here, our goldsmiths took a set of buttons from around 1870—which, unfortunately, is no longer complete—and transformed them into luxurious earrings using modern cultured pearls. At the center of each design is a button that holds a garnet cut into a cabochon, set in warm yellow gold. The gold wraps around the fiery, glowing stone, which is presented like a rose blossom. Practical ear hooks turn them into earrings. The colour palette of warm gold, vibrant red, and snow-white is very good. It has a very wintry feel and is ideal for the coming dark season.

Estimate:£1,076.12

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