Australian Jewellery: 19th and Early 20th Century

This book documents the styles and fashions from European settlement through the colonial era and goldrush periods and provides detailed information about the jewellers, the designers and the makers and their marks. It examines the influence of immigrant jewellers during the second half of the 19th century, their increasing use of locally found gold, silver and gemstones and the incorporation of Australian flowers, plants, birds and animals as decorative motifs. Novelty and souvenir jewellery are discussed as well as the emergence of jewellers working in the Arts and Crafts tradition. There is a description of gemstones and other materials used in Australian jewellery - precious and semi-precious stones, metals, shells and a variety of other unusual substances - as well as a glossary of terms commonly used in describing jewellery. A major part of the book comprises biographical notes on over 250 Australian jewellers and designers, both individuals and firms, whose work is known by mark, documentation or attribution.