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Baroque Jewelry

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Contents

Introduction

With the start of the 17th century Renaissance jewelry evolved gradually into a new style following a new sense of fashion set throughout Europe. From 1625 on we see a clear reaction against the rigid and contorted dresses that had been worn by the ladies of the Renaissance. Soft, flowing dresses with low necklines became the gowns of preference and new jewelry was created to go with the new fashion. The above is mainly true for France, Italy and later Spain but due to the regional differences in Europe that were in place during the 17th century the same can't be automatically said for Germany, England and the Netherlands.

The second half of the 17th century was subject to religious conflicts which divided Europe and caused many protestant craftsmen to flee their Catholic countries of birth and seek asylum in the protestant states like those of the Republic of the Netherlands. The French court became the new leading fashion trendsetter. During the Renaissance this role had been fulfilled by the Habsburg courts of Spain and Austria, bringing uniformity in court dress by diplomatic marriages and political influences. International trade flourished which allowed a middle class of merchants and craftsmen to rise and increase their wealth considerably. This allowed the bourgeoisie to start buying the kind of jewelry which, up until then, had only been fit for nobles. It is in the 17th century that retail jewelers emerge, aside from the craftsman jeweler of the past.

Styles and Techniques

From Renaissance to Baroque

A beautiful example of late Renaissance (or early Baroque) jewelry. An antique cameo, surrounded by a symmetrical array of diamonds, rubies and enamelled gold
The last years of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th saw a gradual change of appearance in jewelry. The use of arabesque motifs, symmetry and a different type of gemstone setting caused these changes. Whether one would like to call this period late Renaissance or early Baroque is up to the reader, fact is that it was a natural evolution of styles which connected the two decorative periods. With the typical Renaissance mythical and devotional themes still firmly in place the new styles crept in slowly. Designs by men like Mignot and Lulls which spread all over Europe triggered the new wind that blew through jewelry design.


Figure work eventually fell from fashion and the emphasize that had been on bright colors created with enamel slowly made place for the brilliance of gemstones on gold. The arabesque motifs were often engraved 'en silhouette' in metal or carried out in champleve enamel. The fashion for moresque art came from Spain, where until 1492 an Islamic caliphate had been situated. The motifs were excellent ways to decorate large flat surfaces such as miniature cases and a new appearance in the repetoire of jewelry items: watch cases. Gemstone setting was now focused on displaying the gem, a result of the increased performance of gems by improved cutting and foiling techniques. A larger amount of cutting designs brought a diversity in shapes available to the goldsmith/designer and drawing attention to the stones themselves instead of on sculpted goldwork became a priority. On the right we can see a pendant design by Daniel Mignot, early 17th century, note the the use of arabesque motifs, the architectural look created with the aligned diamonds and the perfect symmetry.

Baroque Styles

Early Baroque

From the end of the second decade of the 17th century jewelry designs started to become more and more naturalistic. This tendency started in France but soon spread to Europe through printed designs. Cosse-de-pois (pea pod) shapes and later flowers became very popular and over the 3rd and 4th decade many designs in this fashion were produced. Exotic flowers were immensely popular and botany became a study in its own right. The intensification of the trade with the near East had brought flowers to Europe which had never been seen before. A true craze for them was sparked. The Tulipomania of 1634 is an extraordinary example.

Flora had been fashionable in embroidery since the end of the 16th century but was now adopted by jewelry designers as well. Painted enamel, champleve enamel and email on ronde bosse flowers were everywhere. From the 1650's on engraving in metal was another, and later preferred, way of depicting flowers.

Late Baroque

The second half of the 17th century saw the importance of faceted gemstones in designs increase even further. Gem mountings became more delicate and the designs moved away from cluster settings to naturalism and ribbon bows.

The bow is one of the most prevalent features of Baroque jewelery. It found its origin in the ribbon that was used to secure a jewel to a robe but turned into a popular motif itself. Made of precious metal and decorated with gemstones, pearls and enamel the bow brooch or pendant is seen on many portraits and designs.

By the end of the 17th century asymmetrical bouquets or individual flowers prevailed and the use of enamel diminished to the point that it was only to be found in the most conservative circles. A differentiation between jewelry meant to be worn during the day and jewelry that was fit to be worn in the light of a flame emerged. This tendency developed further over the Georgian period.

Rococo

Although the Rococo style falls into the Georgian time span we will briefly address it here as well because it supplements the Late Baroque part of this section. Starting in France around 1730, but spreading all over Europe in the years after, the Rococo style is marked by asymmetry of naturalistic designs. Flowers, foliate and feathers were embossed or engraved on metal. Enamel, at this time, had completely been abandoned as a decorative technique in jewelry. We find the Rococo style mainly in functional jewelry like chatelaines and snuff boxes.

Materials

From portraits it becomes clear that the new fashion in flowing dresses with low necklines was most commonly supplemented by the wearing of sets of pearl jewelry. The Persian Gulf was the premier supplier of the extremely popular pearl in those days. A large pearl fishing industry in Persia (modern day Iran) has been described by Jean Babtiste Tavernier in his autobiographic work 'the Six Voyages'. Imitation pearls were in vast production as well as is illustrated by a patent by a Parisian man called Jaquin which dates from the 17th century. Glass spheres would be lined with a mix of ground fish scales and varnish, after which the sphere would be filled with wax to provide strength.

Diamonds were extremely popular as well during the Baroque. Their availability increased because of intensified trading contacts with India by the Portuguese, British and Dutch trading companies which reached the country by sea. An important diamond deposit was found in the early 17th century: that of Hyderabad in the Golconda region. The aforementioned Tavernier visited several diamond mining areas in India and his accounts tell us about the vast magnitude of the operations.


” The first time I was at this mine there was nearly 60.000 persons working there, including men, women, and children, who were employed in various ways, the men digging, the women and children in carrying earth...[1] ”
The term 'brilliant' started to get used to name faceted diamonds. This doesn't mean that the standard round brilliant as we know was described. The Baroque Brilliants were predominantly square to cushion shaped, had short bezel facets, an open culet and rather steep pavilions and crowns. In order to enhance the idea of size diamonds were now set in silver and foiled to enhance their sparkle at candle light parties. Most diamonds from those days have been subject to re-cutting in more recent times to increase their value. An unfortunate event because this often meant that the jewel they were pulled from was given a trip to the smelting crucible.

Of the colored stones ruby, emerald and topaz were among the highest prized species. High quality imitation jewelry with strass (paste) was being produced on a large scale in order to meet the increased demand of the growing bourgeoisie.

Enamel had remained its popularity for a very long time. From the Middle Ages all through the Renaissance and deep into the Baroque a continuous line in enamelling can be observed. Jean Toutin from Blois, France managed to give a whole new impulse to painted enamel, creating wonderful miniature paintings of extreme high quality, a skill he passed onto his sons.

Types of jewelry

Parures of pearl jewelry were by fast the most common way to supplement the new ladies' fashion of flowing dresses. Often containing a short necklace, drop earrings, a string for the hair and some dress clasps for the bodice, sleeves and waist these pearl sets are encountered on a large amount of portraits from the Baroque period. The earrings often were simple drop shaped pearls suspended from a golden earring but by the 1650's more elaborate earrings started to be worn. The most typical and well known earring type from the late 17th century is the girandole, an earring which comprises a central earring from which three dangling ornaments are suspended. Extreme dress jewelry like it had existed in the Renaissance seized to exist but dress clasps, and bodice ornaments like stomachers adorned with diamonds remained in fashion.


Men's jewelry was most extravagant in France. This most certainly goes for the period under the reign of Louis XIV, who by the end of his life had an enormous collection of jewelry and precious stones. Mainly due to the efforts of Cardinal Mazarin quite a few famous diamonds were present in this collection. In England men's jewelry was more restrained. It appears that continental fashion did not affect England much in the mid 17th century while it was under the puritan rule of Oliver Cromwell. Royalist jewelry with miniature depictions of the executed king Charles I became popular among those who opposed puritanism. Spanish men wore the least jewelry of all, apart from some devotional or chivalric items the wearing of jewelry was restricted by law.

A new kid on the block was the watch. In the 17th century it became an ornament by itself. During the Renaissance clocks had been integrated into all kinds of existing ornaments but now the watch in its own right had seen the light of day. Just like with miniature cases the flat surfaces were excellent places to decorate. Gems on enameled fields, engraving, embossing, just about every possible technique was unleashed to turn the watch cases into the most astonishing jewelry items of their day.

  1. ↑ English translation of 'les Six Voyages' by Valentine Ball, 1925 edition

Sources consulted

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