Wednesday, April 15, 2015

A little history of cameo jewelry

Cameo jewelry has been a popular item for many years now, and it comes in many scenes and sizes.  Just what in the world is cameo jewelry?

Cameo is a method of carving an image into stone or shell that has a flat edge to it.  More often than not, you will see a product that has multiple colors in it to give an extra pop to the carving.  The cameos that are made of semi-precious stone like onyx and agate have examples that date all the way back to ancient Greece and Rome.  The ones that are made of shell are more modern.



The cameo that is pictured above is the type that you would find that’s made in the late 1800’s into the 1900’s.  As you can see, the piece features a picture of a person.  I’ve seen several different motifs including more than one person, an animal, and the occasional flower.





The price of all cameos depends on what it’s made of and the quality of the carving on it.  Some of the places to check are the hair, nose and facial features.  The more features that are present and are vivid, it makes the cameo just that much better.

The great thing about this type of jewelry is that it can fit any budget and liven up any outfit at the same time.  You can see some terrific examples of cameo jewelry in my Etsy shop here.

What examples of cameo jewelry have you found?

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for the quick lesson for those who are not familiar with cameo jewelry – or have seen or owned some, but doesn’t know it was called as such. I agree that one of the best thing about it is that it values the artistic skill of the carver more than the cost of the material itself – though of course those two work hand-in-hand in making a wonderful piece. By the way, the samples which you have presented are great pegs, and I'm glad that you have put those up for reference. Thanks for sharing this wonderful post with us. Cheers!

    Ricky Rowe @ Find A Jewelry Expert

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  2. It's not a problem at all. Thanks for drop me a line, I love to hear from people. I am glad that you enjoyed the post, and I hope that you have a great day!

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