Glossary Archives - Gillian Horsup Vintage Costume Jewellery

CAMEO JEWELLERY

Posted on May 5, 2024 by Gillian Horsup

Cameos are a raised relief made in stone, shell, glass, etc. and later in plastics. They are the opposite of intaglios – which are recessed images. Cameos have a long history and have been made in ivory, coral, stone, lava, shell, glass, jet etc. Later – in the 20th and 21st century plastics were used. These were not carved of course – but were moulded – usually in two pieces to get two different colours. Classical designs have always been popular – and faces. During the 19th century France and Italy were the leading makers of carved shell cameos. Later so many people visiting Italy would come back with a carved, shell cameo – some better than others! Queen Victoria was fond of them. Later costume jewellery companies such as Whiting and Davis, Avon and of course Wedgewood made them in other materials. In the picture are shell, lava, glass, Wedgewood and plastic cameos. Thanks to the authors – M.L. and P.R Clements for their Schiffer book ‘Cameos Classical to Costume’. I like this book because it includes a complete range of items – rather than just the more expensive, carved variety. I like to see the costume jewellery items!

SAPHIRET GLASS

Posted on January 4, 2021January 4, 2021 by Gillian Horsup

Syblle Jargstort says in her book “Baubles, Buttons and Beads” (Schiffer) that saphiret glass was created in the 19th century. The 2 tone effect – varying from brick red to sapphire blue – was made by mixing gold to a basic sapphire blue glass. She gives examples from Gablonz up to the 1930’s. It was expensive to make. Diane de Mango – illusionjewels.com – says that later stones – which she calls sapharine – were made in Germany. They are not as distinctive as the older ones. The examples in the picture are from my own collection and the dates vary – I particularly like the necklace. Saphiret stones are difficult to photograph – do look at other examples on the internet to become familiar with the difference in colour in the older and later stones.

GALALITH

Posted on January 4, 2021January 4, 2021 by Gillian Horsup

Galalith is an early plastic – used mainly between the 1920-40s. It was invented – in the late 19th century by Spilleler and Krisch. It was not patented until 1906. It is a casein plastic made from sour milk combined with formaldehyde. It was also known as Erinoid, Karolith and Aladdinite. It could be moulded by heating and also cut. The Charles Horner Company – in the UK – had their own range of items made from Casein – which they marketed as Dorcasine and continued to use this material until the late 1970’s. Some wonderful jewellery was made from Galalith. Current jewellery makers like Marie Christine Pavone buy old pieces of galalith and rework it. I do try to stock some Pavone – I love her sense of humour! There is plenty of more detailed info on Galalith on Google.

CELLULOID

Posted on January 3, 2021January 3, 2021 by Gillian Horsup

Celluloid is generally regarded as the first thermoplastic. It was first created in 1862 and registered as ‘celluloid’ in 1870. It was used to imitate ivory. It is still in use today for table tennis balls and guitar picks. It had many uses in the jewellery trade and in the home. It was used to make jewellery, hat pins, buttons, jewellery boxes, ring boxes, dolls, dressing table sets, brushes and combs etc. It is often called ivorine or French ivory. It is a fragile material and quite flammable. It can deteriorate over time. Pieces that show deterioration should not be put with other pieces. A good book about celluloid and its care is ‘Celluloid Collectibles’ by Shirley Dunn – published by Collector Books.

MARCASITE

Posted on January 2, 2021January 2, 2021 by Gillian Horsup

Marcasite are small, greyish, stones that have a long history in jewellery making – going back to the Incas in South America. They usually have a faceted top and are flat on the back – although I have had them with pointed backs. To call them marcasite is actually incorrect. They are – iron sulfide with cubic crystal structure – usually referred to as iron pyrite. Marcasite – which is related – is too soft to use. It was very popular in Victoria times and was cheaper than diamonds. For a full description of the history of marcasite look on the Gemondo website – gemondo.com/t-marcasite_history.aspx it is very informative.

POUCHOIR

Posted on January 1, 2021January 1, 2021 by Gillian Horsup

Pouchoir is a complicated process whereby an artist’s picture is broken down into separate areas, and stencils made of each area – and the necessary joining pieces. Craftsmen were then allocated a particular piece each to be painted. This ensured that each finished work looked approximately the same (although minute difference can be seen if you see more than one copy of a work.) It was used in the Art Deco period. For more information see Art Deco Prints by Giuliana Ercoli – Phaidon-Christie’s Limited. These pieces are sometimes mistaken for prints so it is good to look very carefully at Art Deco pictures – you might be lucky!

PEKING GLASS – Incorrect use of

Posted on January 1, 2021January 1, 2021 by Gillian Horsup

Peking Glass is a term that has long been used in the costume jewellery trade to describe Czech. green glass stones that resemble jade. It is in fact not carved but pressed glass. The term is also used loosely to describe moulded green Czech. glass. In fact this is incorrect. Peking Glass is an elaborate procedure requiring a lot of skill! A good description can be found on Wikipedia. It originated in China in the 18th century. It is still being made in china today. I had been using the term for very many years until I realised it was quite incorrect and I no longer use it (although probably in my head it will still be Peking Glass!) You will see that the term is still used widely throughout the Internet – and people having been using it for so long – it will probably still continue to be used – but I wanted to clear up the confusion on my web site!

LUCITE

Posted on December 30, 2020December 30, 2020 by Gillian Horsup

Lucite became very popular for costume jewellery in the 1940s and 1950s. It was cheaper to produce than Bakelite or galalith and could be dyed and polished. Lucite was first produced at the beginning of the 1930s and was used in WW2 in aeroplanes etc. as an alternative to glass. Dupont developed Lucite for jewellery around 1937. Trifari famously used it in his Jelly Bellies. Joseph H. Meyer Bros produced their version referred to as ‘Moonglow’. It could be made in a variety of shapes and colours and was popular until the 1970s. It was also made into bags, shoes and other accessories – and also into furniture. Most of the info in these notes are taken from the www.collectors weekly.com article ‘Vintage Lucite Jewelry’ – but there is plenty of other available info on Google.

CZECHOSLOVAKIAN/BOHEMIAN JEWELLERY

Posted on December 28, 2020December 28, 2020 by Gillian Horsup

I tend to call a lot of the jewellery from the Gablonz area of Czechoslovakia – Bohemian – which is not strictly speaking correct. That’s what we have always called it. However Bohemia actually disappeared after the First World War when the two areas were united to form Czechoslovakia. The jewellery area around Gablonz was made up of both Czech and German speakers – although Gablonz was mainly German speaking. The demise of the important jewellery making area is described in Sibylle Jargstorf’s book ‘Baubles, Buttons and Beads’ (Schiffer) – due to the rise of the Reich and the fact that many of them were Jewish. I find dating this jewellery very difficult – due to the fact that it is not that well documented. Also, although jewellery continued to be made in the area in smaller quantities, it is difficult to see what is original, what has been made from old parts – and what has been copied. I cannot always be sure when trying to date pieces!

BAKELITE

Posted on December 27, 2020December 27, 2020 by Gillian Horsup

Bakelite is a combination of phenolic resin with formaldehyde and was the first thermosetting plastic. It was cast – not moulded – so never has a mould mark. Customers ask me how to tell an article is bakelite. There are many things to look for. Weight – it is heavier than other plastics. Patina – it is very highly polished. Design and colour – this comes with experience! The clink it makes when knocked against another piece of bakelite. The fittings – hinges, screws, rivets and pins – should be period. Also the smell! Sometimes just rubbing the piece will produce the bakelite smell. Otherwise hot water helps. Celluloid smells like camphor, galalith smells like burnt milk and bakelite smells horrible! It is often possible to test with a car metal cleaner. Most people use Simichrome cream – which can be bought on Ebay. Autosol will also work and can be bought in a car accessories shop. When rubbed on a piece of bakelite the cream should turn yellow. (Simichrome is pink and Autosol is white). For some reason this does not always work. Beware the modern copies – in modern plastic, and the reworked bakelite pieces. This is fine if you like the piece and are told – when buying – what it is. It is not good if you pay the price for an old, difficult to find, piece of bakelite and it turns out to be something else! (With reference to The Bakelite Jewelry Book by Corinne Davidov and Ginny Redington Dawes – Abbeville Press.)