Best Jewelry Books of 2021

The 10 publications that connoisseurs should add to their bookshelves.

Understanding Jewellery: The 20th Century
This beautifully illustrated book by David Bennett and Daniela Mascetti, published by ACC Art Books, is divided into chapters covering 20 years apiece. Each discusses the key looks of those decades and the elements that inspired them, including fashion and the economical, social and political events of the day. There are notes on all the featured jewelry, putting the pieces into perspective and helping readers understand why each was chosen.
“Like the original work, we have treated the century from a chronological viewpoint. We believe this helps people to see how the era evolved,” the authors say.

Unearthed: Surprising Stories Behind the Jewels
The mineral and gem collection at the Smithsonian Institution is one of the largest in the world. One of its star attractions is, of course, the Hope Diamond, which millions of visitors a year come to see at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. While the dazzling beauty of the gems on display is what draws people in, the history behind them is equally fascinating, as a new book by the collection’s curator, Dr. Jeffrey Edward Post, illustrates in beautiful detail.
The Smithsonian National Gem Collection — Unearthed: Surprising Stories Behind the Jewels focuses on the backstories of these glorious specimens — not just their historic contexts, but also their former owners. The accounts of how the gems ended up in the museum inevitably intrigue visitors, whether they’re tales of “romance, or power, or war, or enviable wealth,” Post says.

Andrew Grima: The Father of Modern Jewellery
Celebrating the life and career of the designer who helped spearhead the British modern jewelry movement of the 1960s to 1970s, William Grant’s book Andrew Grima: The Father of Modern Jewellery (ACC Art Books) is the first major monograph on the master jeweler.
As the husband of Grima’s second wife, Jojo, and stepfather to their daughter, Francesca, he had access to family history as well as extensive archives. These included thousands of Grima’s rough sketches, fine-line pencil drawings, formal painted designs, plus photographs and records covering the span of Grima’s life in jewelry.
Grant undertook the book, he says, at his wife’s request, to coincide with her late husband’s 100th anniversary in 2021. The result is a detailed and lavishly illustrated portrait of Grima’s personal and professional life, showcasing the jeweler’s evolving collections, from the 1940s through to his death in 2007.

Winged Beauty: The Butterfly Jewellery Art of Wallace Chan
Born in 1956 in Fuzhou, China, jewelry artist Wallace Chan is as well-known for his sculptural creations as for the tools and techniques he has developed to achieve his vision. Demonstrating both achievements, his signature bejeweled butterflies are the subject of a new book, Winged Beauty: The Butterfly Jewellery Art of Wallace Chan (ACC Art Books). In it, five jewelry experts — Melanie Grant, Vanessa Cron, Juliet Weir-de La Rochefoucauld, Emily Stoehrer, and Ming Liu, discuss his technical advances as well as the artistry of these jeweled fantasies and Chan’s creative process. Illuminating the tome are color photos that bring the beauty of his pieces to life.

Cipullo: Making Jewelry Modern
One of the most iconic jewels of the 20th century was designed as a modern symbol of everlasting love, following its creator’s heartbreak. This design staple — a bracelet fastened to the wearer’s wrist with a special screwdriver — could have been signed Tiffany & Co. if the company had accepted Aldo Cipullo’s groundbreaking idea. Instead, Cartier New York snapped up the concept, and the rest is history. The bangle has been seen on celebrities’ wrists since it launched in 1969, and it has since become an indispensable item in the collection of any fashion-conscious woman or man. The beautifully illustrated and elegantly narrated coffee-table book Cipullo: Making Jewelry Modern (Assouline) shows that the designer’s creative range was much wider than this classic best-seller for which he became famous.

Tadema Gallery London: Jewellery from the 1860s to 1960s
Tadema Gallery in London is the brainchild of two professional photographers — married couple Sonya and the late David Newell-Smith — who founded the store to showcase their love of art and its expression in jewelry. Now, the gallery and the fabulous finds it stocked over the years are the subject of a new book, Tadema Gallery London: Jewellery from the 1860s to 1960s (Arnoldsche Verlagsanstalt).
Jewelry historian and co-author Beatriz Chadour-Sampson felt it was “hugely important that the history of such an important gallery be documented.” The resulting lavishly illustrated tome presents not only beautiful jewelry, but also information about the periods represented, as well as details on the featured pieces, such as close-ups of maker’s marks.

The Soul of Jewellery
Jewelry is “a work of art, arising from the talent of its creator and the beauty of its stones.” So begins the foreword to The Soul of Jewellery (Flammarion), a new book that goes on to describe its subject as “an object of transformation, of social intercession, and of power that speaks of seduction and adornment,” among many other things.
Casting a wide net, the publisher brought together an eclectic group of contributors whose expertise ranges from science to the arts and who provide thoughtful tangents to the traditional discussion of jewelry’s finer points. Among these contributors are botanist Marc Jeanson, mineralogist Érik Gonthier, artist Joana Vasconcelos, architects Dominique Jakob and Brendan MacFarlane, auctioneer Benoît Repellin, senior curator and Art Deco specialist Évelyne Possémé, composer and pianist Karol Beffa, novelist Carole Martinez, perfumer Frédéric Malle, art historian Charline Coupeau, journalist Virginie Mouzat, French literature specialist Sophie Pelletier, senior curator and Asian-art specialist Amin Jaffer, philosopher Emanuele Coccia, and photographer Julia Hetta.

Sapphire: A Celebration of Colour
A member of the corundum gemological family, sapphire is second only to diamond in its hardness, which makes it possible to carve into cameos and intaglios. Its crystals are often larger than those of a ruby or emerald, meaning the stone can be cut into large shapes for impressive jewels. And it naturally occurs in a range of colors, from deepest blue, green and grey to yellow, orange, pink and purple, notes gemologist and fine-jewelry specialist Joanna Hardy in her new book, Sapphire: A Celebration of Colour (Thames & Hudson).
Having tackled emerald and ruby in previous books, Hardy completes her trilogy of the “big three” gemstones with this informative tome. She spent 10 years traveling the globe while writing the trio of books, most recently visiting sapphire deposits in Madagascar — the biggest producer of sapphires since they were discovered there in 1998, she notes.

Stones of the Grand Bazaar
It’s not just the heady Turkish city’s legendary strait, animal species, and local flowers that spark the imagination of Meváris creative director Fatma Altınbaş. The author of this delightfully opulent book (Rizzoli) is also a cultural anthropologist and a sociology lecturer, and she applies these fields to her narrative.
In her erudite ode to the storied Turkish metropolis, Altınbaş takes readers on a fascinating journey through vibrant markets and colorful interiors, highlighting how the beautifully crafted ornaments she’s known since childhood have found their way into her contemporary jewels.
“I am forever indebted to Istanbul’s historical legacy for helping me to define my own design aesthetic. My jewelry brand, Meváris, was born out of a love for this heritage,” she writes.

G: Glenn Spiro – The Art of a Jewel
Featuring original photography of his most iconic designs, gouache drawings and personal stories from industry legends who know him best, G: Glenn Spiro – The Art of a Jewel is a veritable treasure trove. It will enlighten anyone unfamiliar with his work as to why Glenn Spiro is one of the top inventive high jewelry designers of our generation.
Creating this book was a labor of love between the Assouline publishing house and Spiro, who sees it as “a memoir of the pieces I’ve made and the adventures I’ve lived through.”