Victorian jewelry is often referring to the style of jewelry created during the reign of Queen Victoria in England in the latter seventy five percent of the 19th century. As Queen, Victoria often set the standard of dress as well as jewelry, hence the name Victorian jewelry.
Did you know there were some rules about this early Victorian period jewelry? For instance, diamonds and other precious gemstones were not to be worn during the daylight hours. Victorian diamond jewelry was only to be worn for evening events and only by married ladies. If someone unmarried wore diamonds, it was assumed that she received them from a lover or they were handed down. To avoid any controversy, diamond Victorian jewelry was simply not worn except by married women.
1837 Victorian jewelry kicked off the early romantic period of Queen Victoria’s reign. In addition to the wearing diamonds rule, you could find delicate gold jewelry worn both during the day and evening. Lockets and brooches were among the most popular of designs for Victorian jewellery.
Upon the death of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband, the Queen starting wearing Victorian mourning jewelry as a sign of his passing and her grief. Darker gemstones were often used in this mourning jewelry such as onyx, garnet and jet. Today, if you found this type of antique Victorian jewelry, it would be a real coup and worth quite a bit of money. Back during this era, there were even elaborate antique Victorian jewelry boxes in which to store your most valuable wearable treasures.
Flash forward to today and you will find Victorian costume jewelry that is fairly inexpensive but still gives you the illusion of that Victorian period. In fact, Victorian reproduction jewelry is quite popular because that era produced such distinct and elegant detailing. Plus the symbolism of some pieces like the mourning jewelry is especially fascinating today, especially with collectors and historians.
In addition to the Victorian reproduction costume jewelry, you can likely find reproductions of the beautiful Victorian jewelry armoires as well. Of course, if you are lucky, you might also find a real antique Victorian jewelry box. Those are highly sought after. Even the Victorian jewelry stands are important to those seeking type of jewelry accessory from the Victorian era.
Whether you can find a true Victorian jewelry box or a reproduction, it would be a lovely addition to your Victorian collection. And if you are just starting out with your Victorian jewelry collection, it is important to seek guidance with a jewelry historian and conduct some research. You never know, you just might find that Victorian jewelry “diamond in the rough.”
