As I talked about before, jewelry has been worn since before recorded history, why? It is used as a symbol of wealth and power... and because if you cut a stone just right... it's shiny. Pure and simple... I love shiny stuff... polish some silver and hammer it out throw in some fine cut gemstones... and wow! Beauty!
I don't think ancient women thought about jewelry with any other idea other than it was beautiful. Oh, maybe Cleopatra wore her accessories to show her power, but you can't tell me that she didn't like the way the gold reflected onto her skin... giving it a wonderful golden tint that made her look even more beautiful and healthy than she was....
Men wear jewelry as well. Some men wear jewelry because it's shiny and pretty, many for other reasons , like watches that cost thousands of dollars, for status. My husband had a chain that was given to him by his mother, he wore it all the time, literally. That chain was a keepsake to him.
Men throughout history have worn jewelry to denote power, wealth, the same today with cufflinks, watches, chins, rings... Most men today wear a utilitarian watch, a wedding band or jewelry as my husband did, to remind them.
Examples of Egyptians wearing elaborate jewelry are painted on the walls in the pyramids, in Egypt. The Egyptian Museum in Cairo has many of the examples in their exhibits of King Tutankhamen and King Ramses. Examples of power and wealth were the head dresses, cuffs, necklaces made from solid gold, encrusted with jewels. Some of these treasures have toured the world, been seen by millions.
The Celts left examples of their jewelry in hoards buried from the Balkans to the British Isles. The Celts wealth was even written by
Strabo as, "... love of decoration. They wear torcs on their necks, and bracelets
on their arms and wrists, and their nobles adorn themselves with dyed
garments sprinkled with gold..." Strabo also describes taxes on imports from Celtica as ..."ivory chains and necklaces, and amber-gem ..."
Aztec ruins have revealed carved gems, gold,and elaborate design Found in 1975, the "Las Joyas del Pescador" or the Fisherman's Treasure is on display in Veracruz at the The Baluarte de Santiago.
But what makes us want to wear lavish jewels? Even acrylic jewelry appeals to some. What is it about adornment that intrigues us so?
Traditional wedding ceremonies have an exchange of rings, symbolizing the eternal love, or just to show that they were 'taken'
The Diamond Source says that wedding bands were used in Ancient Egypt, originally woven from reeds. Not exceptionally beautiful probably, but effective. Jewish and Christian religions have used rings in marriage ceremonies
I was looking through the reams of information on the internet about wearing jewelry. I mean, there must be thousands of pages to sort through. One interesting bit of information I came across was the Spiritual Science Research Foundation with a page to actually teach you how to wear jewelry. It tells of the divine consciousness from wearing gold necklaces, rings, copper bracelets, and earrings.
Not all religions agree on wearing jewelry, so it isn't always spiritual in nature. Some religions actually refrain from wearing jewelry in general. 1Peter 3:3 states that, "...Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel." Some take that and other scriptures from the Bible to mean that you should never adorn yourself.
So, why do some people, men and women alike wear jewelry, some to excess?
It has been a source of study for some time,
JCK study of Jewelry buyers from the price range of $100-$1,000, showed that the buyers fell into 5 catagories:
Sentimentalist
Gifter
Stylish Shopper
Influencer
Practical Shopper
Now, of these categories, the Influencer is one that I have already addressed. They wear their jewelry as a status symbol... the stylish shopper is one that likes to "Accessorize their outfits, or give them some 'bling'" We all know people like this, that match their necklace to their earrings, to their bracelet and shoes. The jewelry becomes part of that outfit, and it seems bare without it.
The Sentamentalist is one that has "feelings about the product". We all know someone like this. My husband, for example, wore the necklace his mother gave him every day. My wedding band is that, my aunt wore a watch that my uncle gave her on their anniversary, my friend with her pendant that denotes her husbands occupation. They wear jewelry that has an attachment to it.
The practical shopper is one that buys inexpensive costume jewelry. Not that this is a bad thing. Many people manufacture less expensive alternatives to jewelry. The boom in the home jewelry business is all about wearing costume or less expensive, creative jewelry. Most new metal smits learn to work in copper and brass before trying their skills with silver and gold. There are schools popping up all across the country, teaching eclectic jewelry making. Beadfest is a huge gathering of teachers and students, all with fun and funky designs that appeal to this group.
Studies have shown that necklace and earring purchases comprise about half the jewelry sales2That, out of 50 million Americans who buy fine jewelry each year. Brooches and bracelets. body jewelry toe rings and belts comprise the other half of the jewelry purchases...people just love jewelry.
So, what leads you to wear jewelry? Me? It is a mixture of the sentimental, with my wedding bands and favorite necklaces that were made by my Great Uncle, Grandmother, or Mother, Aunts, etc... Sometimes...it is wearing fashionable, everyday jewelry. There are times that I like wearing some pretty exclusive and expensive necklaces and bracelets when I want to show off!
Mainly... I like shiny, bright, sparkly and beautiful jewelry.
1. “The JCK–Harrison Group Consumer Jewelry Study,” JCK, July 2008, p. 65).
2. The Diamond Council- PDF - Advanced Jewelry Sales,Lesson 7; page 4 paragraph4.
http://www.gia.edu/gia-news-research/earrings-popular-history-ancient-to-modern
aztec jewelry == http://www.aztec-history.com/aztec-jewelry.html
The Geography of Strabo published in Vol. II
of the Loeb Classical Library edition,
1923 book IV chapter 5, Pages 255-259
I don't think ancient women thought about jewelry with any other idea other than it was beautiful. Oh, maybe Cleopatra wore her accessories to show her power, but you can't tell me that she didn't like the way the gold reflected onto her skin... giving it a wonderful golden tint that made her look even more beautiful and healthy than she was....
Men wear jewelry as well. Some men wear jewelry because it's shiny and pretty, many for other reasons , like watches that cost thousands of dollars, for status. My husband had a chain that was given to him by his mother, he wore it all the time, literally. That chain was a keepsake to him.
Men throughout history have worn jewelry to denote power, wealth, the same today with cufflinks, watches, chins, rings... Most men today wear a utilitarian watch, a wedding band or jewelry as my husband did, to remind them.Examples of Egyptians wearing elaborate jewelry are painted on the walls in the pyramids, in Egypt. The Egyptian Museum in Cairo has many of the examples in their exhibits of King Tutankhamen and King Ramses. Examples of power and wealth were the head dresses, cuffs, necklaces made from solid gold, encrusted with jewels. Some of these treasures have toured the world, been seen by millions.
The Celts left examples of their jewelry in hoards buried from the Balkans to the British Isles. The Celts wealth was even written by
Strabo as, "... love of decoration. They wear torcs on their necks, and bracelets
on their arms and wrists, and their nobles adorn themselves with dyed
garments sprinkled with gold..." Strabo also describes taxes on imports from Celtica as ..."ivory chains and necklaces, and amber-gem ..."Aztec ruins have revealed carved gems, gold,and elaborate design Found in 1975, the "Las Joyas del Pescador" or the Fisherman's Treasure is on display in Veracruz at the The Baluarte de Santiago.
But what makes us want to wear lavish jewels? Even acrylic jewelry appeals to some. What is it about adornment that intrigues us so?Traditional wedding ceremonies have an exchange of rings, symbolizing the eternal love, or just to show that they were 'taken'
The Diamond Source says that wedding bands were used in Ancient Egypt, originally woven from reeds. Not exceptionally beautiful probably, but effective. Jewish and Christian religions have used rings in marriage ceremonies
I was looking through the reams of information on the internet about wearing jewelry. I mean, there must be thousands of pages to sort through. One interesting bit of information I came across was the Spiritual Science Research Foundation with a page to actually teach you how to wear jewelry. It tells of the divine consciousness from wearing gold necklaces, rings, copper bracelets, and earrings.
Not all religions agree on wearing jewelry, so it isn't always spiritual in nature. Some religions actually refrain from wearing jewelry in general. 1Peter 3:3 states that, "...Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel." Some take that and other scriptures from the Bible to mean that you should never adorn yourself.
So, why do some people, men and women alike wear jewelry, some to excess?
It has been a source of study for some time,
JCK study of Jewelry buyers from the price range of $100-$1,000, showed that the buyers fell into 5 catagories:
Sentimentalist
Gifter
Stylish Shopper
Influencer
Practical Shopper
Now, of these categories, the Influencer is one that I have already addressed. They wear their jewelry as a status symbol... the stylish shopper is one that likes to "Accessorize their outfits, or give them some 'bling'" We all know people like this, that match their necklace to their earrings, to their bracelet and shoes. The jewelry becomes part of that outfit, and it seems bare without it.
The Sentamentalist is one that has "feelings about the product". We all know someone like this. My husband, for example, wore the necklace his mother gave him every day. My wedding band is that, my aunt wore a watch that my uncle gave her on their anniversary, my friend with her pendant that denotes her husbands occupation. They wear jewelry that has an attachment to it.
The practical shopper is one that buys inexpensive costume jewelry. Not that this is a bad thing. Many people manufacture less expensive alternatives to jewelry. The boom in the home jewelry business is all about wearing costume or less expensive, creative jewelry. Most new metal smits learn to work in copper and brass before trying their skills with silver and gold. There are schools popping up all across the country, teaching eclectic jewelry making. Beadfest is a huge gathering of teachers and students, all with fun and funky designs that appeal to this group.
Studies have shown that necklace and earring purchases comprise about half the jewelry sales2That, out of 50 million Americans who buy fine jewelry each year. Brooches and bracelets. body jewelry toe rings and belts comprise the other half of the jewelry purchases...people just love jewelry.
So, what leads you to wear jewelry? Me? It is a mixture of the sentimental, with my wedding bands and favorite necklaces that were made by my Great Uncle, Grandmother, or Mother, Aunts, etc... Sometimes...it is wearing fashionable, everyday jewelry. There are times that I like wearing some pretty exclusive and expensive necklaces and bracelets when I want to show off!
Mainly... I like shiny, bright, sparkly and beautiful jewelry.
1. “The JCK–Harrison Group Consumer Jewelry Study,” JCK, July 2008, p. 65).
2. The Diamond Council- PDF - Advanced Jewelry Sales,Lesson 7; page 4 paragraph4.
http://www.gia.edu/gia-news-research/earrings-popular-history-ancient-to-modern
aztec jewelry == http://www.aztec-history.com/aztec-jewelry.html
The Geography of Strabo published in Vol. II
of the Loeb Classical Library edition,
1923 book IV chapter 5, Pages 255-259
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