_Pin in Beaten Silver and Enamel_ D. VEAZEY
_Pin in Beaten Silver and Enamel_ D. VEAZEY
_Silver Hair Pin touched with Enamel_ ANNIE MCLEISH
_Hair Pin of Gold decorated with Enamel and Mother-of-pearl_ W. HODGKINSON
_Hair Pin in Silver and Enamel_ E. M. HODGKINSON
_A and B. Jewelled Brooches in beaten Copper_ _C and D. Jewelled Buckles in beaten Aluminium_
_A Jewelled Shoe-Buckle in beaten Copper_ _B. Cloak Clasp in beaten Silver_ _C. Waist-band Clasp in beaten Silver_
_C. Pendants in Silver; the upper one with Enamels, the lower with Turquoises_
[Illustration: _Silver Finger Ring set with Pearls, Amethysts, and Rubies_
_Silver Brooch and Pendant Heart set with Rubies, Pearls, and Turquoises_
[Illustration: _Necklet of beaten Silver, chased, and set with Fire Opals_
[Illustration: _Silver Pendant and Chain set with Turquoises and Chrysoprase_
_A. Silver Belt_ _B. Silver Necklet, set with Pearl Blisters, Coral and Aquamarine_
_A. Silver Chain and Pendants set with Stones_
_Silver Clasp enriched with Enamel_ ANNIE ALABASTER
_Silver Clasp inset with Enamel_ DAVID VEAZEY
[Illustration: _Silver and Enamel Clasps, Pins and Brooches_
_A, D, G. Brooches and a Cross in Gold, set with Stones_
[Illustration: _A. Six Pins in Silver and Enamel_
Critical examination of the jewellery of any particular period cannot fail to be practically a chapter of the history of culture. The popular saying: "Every time has the poet it deserves," is superficially true, yet holds within itself a certain element of falsehood, as does pretty well every commonplace proverb of the same kind. However, if the sentence be slightly modified, as it very well may be, so that it reads, "Every time has the jewellery it deserves," there will be absolutely nothing untrue about it, for the ornaments worn, whether on the dress, the hair, or the person of the wearer, have always reflected in a marked degree the taste of their period, and are very distinctly differentiated from those of any other time, so that changes in fashion imply changes of a more radical description in popular feeling.
A history of personal ornament is open to many side issues, and unfolds itself in two different--indeed, opposite--directions. Primitive savages, as is well known, wear ornaments before they take to clothes. The Fiji islanders sport gold chains round their necks, and the African negroes in their untamed state load themselves with every glittering object they can get hold of, looking upon the multiplication of ornaments as a sign of wealth. Very different, of course, is the state of civilisation of those who look upon decoration as an evidence of art culture, and care only for such ornaments as require the exercise of technical skill in their production, valuing them in proportion to the amount of that skill displayed by their craftsmen, rather than the intrinsic value of their material. The time of the Italian Renaissance is an instance of the truth of this. As has so often before been the case in the times of transition which are of inevitable recurrence, our own modern epoch is characterised by a certain unrest and confusion, in which many tendencies are contending with each other side by side, and neutralising, to a great extent, each other's effects. In America, the Tiffany company seems to aim at producing masses of precious stones, which will give primarily the impression of the great wealth of their owner and producer; whereas, in France, Lalique the jeweller endeavours rather to throw into the background the actual value of the jewels, their artistic setting being the first thing to strike the observer. We in Austria have greater leanings to France than to America, and precious stones, however great their intrinsic value, are looked upon as of quite secondary value in modern art-work to beauty of line and of colour. French influence on Austrian work cannot fail to be recognised. Its germs fell indeed on a soil of exceptional fertility, with the result that they have taken root and borne abundant fruit. It should perhaps, however, be remarked that those races who are the heirs of a strong art tradition do not need, as do others less fortunate, to prove the wealth of their inheritance by the use of lavish ornament. Their inherent artistic culture is indeed evidenced by the fact that they expect their artists to exercise their skill on materials less costly than do those who, to a certain extent, have their reputations still to make. Benvenuto Cellini had to be content to work in silver, the Americans want to have every stick or umbrella-handle to be of gold.