Author Stellene Volandes takes readers on a romp through the landmark pieces that have dazzled humanity since ancient times.
Cartier panthers, bejeweled serpents, diamonds and diadems and more, oh my! Coco Chanel, Wallis Simpson, former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, Madeleine Albright’s brooches — these are just some of the people and topics covered in Jewels That Made History: 100 Stones, Myths, and Legends (Rizzoli New York, October 2020) by jewelry expert Stellene Volandes.
In the intro to the book, Volandes — who is editor in chief of Town & Country magazine and editorial director of Elle Décor — gives readers notice not to expect a “history of jewelry,” or of the world, for that matter. What they should expect, she says, is a “highly opinionated chronicle of select moments where these forces collide.”
She wrote the volume as an invitation to readers to fall “deeply in love with jewelry,” as she herself did, and to look beyond the sparkle of the individual gems to the stories they have to tell. The stories in the book form a lavishly illustrated timeline that stretches from “the beginning” — i.e., the Paleolithic era — through 2019.
Jewels That Made History begins with a brief recap of ancient civilizations because, as the author says, “in the beginning, there were jewels,” and “if there are people, there will be jewelry.” The last entry in the book recounts the modern-day heist of historical treasures at the Green Vault in Dresden, Germany, on November 25, 2019. The fabled Dresden Green Diamond was saved from that robbery, as it had been lent out to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York for an exhibition.
Maintaining a tone light enough to keep the interest of culture mavens but fact-filled enough to please both history buffs and true jewelry lovers, Volandes presents the past with a modern touch; she describes Britain’s Queen Victoria, for instance, as “the original influencer.” She also adroitly mixes tales of jewels from across the centuries, ranging from Queen Elizabeth I’s pearls to Princess Diana’s engagement ring and the tiaras worn by next-generation royal brides Meghan Markle and Princess Eugenie. Lore and legends of classic jewelry, from named diamonds to the landmark auction of actress Elizabeth Taylor’s collection at Christie’s, all find their places in this selective history.
There’s even a global list of “Great Jewelry Collections of the World,” which includes some of the author’s favorite places to go “in search of historic jewels.” But the most important takeaway Volandes would like her readers to gain is “a call to take jewelry out of the safe, glass vitrine or velvet box, and place it on the grand stage of history.”
Main image: Aquamarine and ruby belt with a buckle necklace designed by Fulco, Duke of Verdura, for Paul Flato, circa 1935. Photo: Siegelson.
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