Famous Jewelers
Browse the list below or use the search function to find more information on the jeweler you are looking for.
Akelo
Born in 1967 in the town of Corchiano, some forty miles north of Rome, Andrea Cagnetti grew up hidden away near where the ancient Etruscan lands of Fescennia are believed to be located. After specializing in scientific studies at the Ronciglione state...
Alma Pihl
Destined to be one of Fabergé’s most unique designers, Alma was born in Moscow, daughter of Knut Oscar Pihl, the Head of the Fabergé workshop in Moscow and granddaughter of August Holmström, Fabergé’s leading jeweler. Following the death of her...
Asprey
Venerable English jeweller. William Asprey established Asprey in 1781. During the previous century, his Huguenot ancestors fled religious persecution in France, eventually settling in England, where they put their traditional leatherworking, watchmaking, and...
Aucoc
(1877 - 1932) Renowned nineteenth-century French jeweller and goldsmith. Louis Aucoc (1850-1932) came from a family of well-known goldsmiths.Vever,432. Vever mentions the Aucoc family throughout his book. Of particular interest, perhaps, is the fact that the...
Baily, Banks & Biddle
Diamond Ring by Bailey, Banks & Biddle, c.1900. (1832 - present) The famous American jewelry firm from Philadelphia, Bailey, Banks and Biddle, first opened its doors as Bailey and Kitchen in 1832. Catering to modish Philadelphians, the firm sold...
Belais
Belais Manufacturing Co., founded by David Belais (1863 - June 5, 1933), was among the early manufacturers of white gold jewelry in the United States. During the late 19th and early 20th century, they experimented with various alloys for white gold as a substitute...
Belperron
Suzanne Belperron was born Madeleine Suzanne Vuillerme on September 26, 1900 to Jules Alix Vuillerme and Marie Clarisse Baily-Maitre in Saint-Claude, France. Her mother encouraged her talents and enrolled her in the Municipal School of Music and Fine Arts quite a...
Berlin Iron
Berlin iron is a black-lacquered cast iron material used in jewelry making beginning c. 1790. Originating in Silesia, Prussia at the Gleiwitz Foundry, the Royal Berlin Foundry and a manufacturer in Horovice, Bohemia all produced jewelry in this manner. The French...
Black, Starr & Frost
(1810 - present) One of America’s oldest fine jewelers, Black, Starr and Frost traces its roots to 1810. In that year, Erastus Barton and Frederick Marquand opened Marquand and Barton near New York’s Maiden Lane. The firm added and lost partners numerous times. It...
Boucheron
Boucheron (1858 - present) Frederic Boucheron Before opening his own jewellery store in 1858, Frédéric Boucheron apprenticed at the fashionable Parisian jewellery house Deschamps. When Deschamps retired, he discouraged Frédéric from entering the jewellery trade,...
Buccellati
(1919 - present) Italian firm famous for its textural gold jewellery and exquisite silver objects. According to family history, the Buccellati's first foray into the jewellery trade was in the mid-eighteenth century when Contardo Buccellati worked as a goldsmith in...
Bulgari
Based in Rome, the jewelry firm of Bulgari is best known for their bold designs from the 1960’s to 80’s. The firm’s history begins with the patriarch of the Bulgari family, Sotirios (1857-1932). After a series of political upheavals and traumatic robberies, Sotirios...
C.D. Peacock
(1837 - present) In 1837, Elijah Peacock opened Chicago’s first retail jewelry and watch shop. The store specialized in selling and repairing watches and also carried a small line of jewelry. Elijah taught the trade to his son, Charles, who later took over the...
Carrera y Carrera
Carrera y Carrera is a Madrigal (Spain) jewelry house which, since 1885, has been producing high-end jewelry and is known for its figurative items. Maker's Marks and Timeline: External LinkCarrera y Carrera Website
Cartier
The illustrious firm of Cartier has been at the forefront of some of the most important jewelry design trends of the 20th century. Ranging from the opulence of La Belle Époque, the geometry, and exoticism of the Art Deco movement to the development of the classic...
Carvin French
Pink Diamond and Demantoid Garnet Flamingo Brooch by Carvin French. The manufacturing jewelry firm, Carvin French, was founded in 1954 by two Frenchmen working together in New York. Andre Chervin learned the jewelry trade through a traditional apprenticeship in France...
Castellani
Castellani was the Italian jeweler who initiated the archaeological revival movement in the mid-nineteenth century. Castellani’s founder, Fortunato Pio Castellani, opened up shop in Rome in 1814. In 1826, he met his lifelong friend and collaborator Michaelango Caetani...
Chanel
Gabrielle Bonheur ‘Coco’ Chanel’s inauspicious beginnings did not portend the impact she would have on the world of fashion. Her start in life was modest and at a young age, things took a turn for the worse when, upon her mother’s death, she and...
Charlton & Co.
Founded in 1909 at 298 Fifth Avenue by John W. Charlton, J.W. Charlton was not known as Charlton & Co. until Robert S. Chapin joined the firm and they moved to 635 Fifth Avenue. In 1919 the operations were taken over by James Todd and Grant A. Peacock. Branches in...
Chaumet
The house of Chaumet was founded in 1780 by Marie-Etiene Nitot as Nitot et fils. Nitot had begun his career working with Auber, jeweler to Queen Marie-Antoinette. An aristocratic clientele was soon to follow him to his new workshop. A reputation as the "jeweler of...
Child & Child
(1880 - 1916) An English jewellery firm known for Art Nouveau jewellery. In 1880, the firm opened their doors at Seville Street in Knightsbridge, London. While initially producing neo-Renaissance jewellery, Child and Child later created...
Claflin
This is a world where color and movement reign, where everything we do or wear expresses the individual, not someone else's idea of fashion. Donald Claflin (1935-1979) was a noted American jewelry designer most associated with the colorful...
Cocteau
Jean Cocteau (1889 - 1963) was a French avant-garde artist. Maker's Marks and Timeline: External LinkJean Cocteau on wikipedia
Cymric
Liberty & Co. of London introduced this trade name in 1899 to distinguish jewelry they sold by British designers and firms. Arthur Gaskin, Bernard Cuzner and Archibald Knox were the designers from the Arts & Crafts movement who created most of the Cymric...
Dali
Salvador Dali (1904 – 1989) was a Spanish painter and artist. Maker's Marks and Timeline: External LinkSalvador Dali on wikipedia
Drayson
The firm of Drayson, London was founded in 1936. The firm's owner, Keith Drayson established the business in Bond Street. As the Art Deco influence in their designs began to evolve, Drayson's jewels became increasingly abstract. Known for producing excellent quality...
Edward Moore
Edward C. Moore was the jewelry design director and head of the silver workshops at Tiffany & Co. from 1851 to 1891. Under Moore’s direction, the artists at Tiffany studied jewelry and objects from all over the world and many historical periods. He is credited...
Fabergé
Fabergé was a preeminent Russian jewelry firm famous for its objets d’art and, in particular, its enameling. The Fabergé family heritage hails to seventeenth-century France. Expelled from the region when Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes in 1685, the Fabergés...
Falize
Renowned French jewellery house famous for its cloisonné enameling and Japanese-inspired designs. The firm’s history begins in 1832 when Alexis Falize (1811-1898) began an apprenticeship with Parisian jeweller Mellerio dit Meller. An eager...
Flato
Paul Flato, one of the more fascinating characters in American jewelry history, designed jewels that were as inventive and flamboyant as their creator. Catering to the tastes and whims of the very wealthy and the stars of Hollywood, Flato flourished at a time when...
Fouquet
French jeweller known for its Renaissance Revival and Art Nouveau work. In 1839, the firm’s founder, Alphonse Fouquet, entered the jewellery industry at the age of eleven, serving as an apprentice to Parisian jeweller Henri Meusnier. His mistreatment under Meusnier is...
Gaillard
French jeweller known for Japanese motif jewellery and mixed metals work. In 1860, Ernest Gaillard took over his father’s Parisian jewellery workshops. Though the workshops had, until then, produced primarily gilt copper jewels, Ernest changed...
Garrard
(1843 - present) British Crown Jewellers since 1843. Garrard and Co. traces its roots back to George Wickes, a goldsmith who entered his mark at Goldsmith’s Hall in 1722. Wickes, who established a shop in 1735, became famous by...
Geiss
Johann C. Geiss (1771-1846) was an innovator in the field of iron jewelry. Geiss designed jewelry elements that could be individually sent out for casting then assembled at his workshop. Eventually, he opened his own foundry in Berlin. His popular necklaces and...
Giuliano
(c.1860 - 1914) Carlo Giuliano (1831-1895) was an Italian goldsmith who moved to London with his wife and two sons c.1860. He established a workshop in Frith Street where his predominantly revivalist jewelry was created. This location did not have a showroom,...
Golay Fils & Stahl
The firm was founded at 31, quai des Bergues, Geneva in 1837 by Auguste Golay-Leresche, a clockmaker. The house was sold to Stahl around 1900 and the name became Golay Fils & Stahl. In the period from 1860 until 1930 there were two stores, the original in Geneva...
Graff
(1962 - present) Important British diamond dealer and retailer. Laurence Graff is considered by many to be Harry Winston’s heir; the new “King of Diamonds.” In 1962, Graff opened a small shop in London. He is known for important diamonds including the Grand Coeur...
Granat Bros
The iconic San Francisco Jewelers, Granat Bros. got their start in 1905 when brothers Joseph and Leo Granat opened their first store in Stockton, California. In 1927 they built a combination retail outlet and manufacturing workshop at the northwest corner of Mission...
Gübelin
Lucerne, Switzerland, 1854, Jakob Josef Mauritz Breitschmid opens a watchmaker's shop. Jakob's apprentice, Eduard Jakob Gübelin, marries his daughter Bertha Breitschmid and in 1899 assumes command of the business. In 1919 the business passes to their son, Eduard...
J.E. Caldwell
(1839 - present) Venerable American jeweler from Philadelphia known for its Art Nouveau and Art Deco jewels. In 1839, James Emmott Caldwell began to supply wealthy Philadelphians with stylish European jewelry, silver, and objets d'art. Previously Caldwell had trained...
JAR
(1977 - present) Reclusive contemporary French artist noted for his collectible pavé jewelry. In 1977, Joel Arthur Rosenthal opened his firm JAR with his partner Pierre Jeannet. Born in the Bronx in 1943, Rosenthal attended...
Jensen
(1898 - present) Danish silversmith and jeweller famous for his Arts and Crafts designs. Like many of his contemporaries, Georg Jensen was trained extensively in the arts. From 1880-84, he apprenticed for a local goldsmith and learned to sculpt. In 1887, he won a...
John Brogden
John Brogden was an English goldsmith known for his ancient, Egyptian, and Renaissance revival designs. Brodgen worked in the Covent Garden area of London, first as Brogden and Garland (1826 to 1835). From 1842 to 1864 the firm at that address was listed as Watherston...
Julius Cohen
Julius Cohen started his career as a jeweler in 1929 when he became an apprentice at his uncle’s shop: Oscar Heyman & Bros. Throughout the 1930’s, Cohen helped to extend Heyman’s influence into the Western and Southern United...
Lacloche Frères
The Firm(s)Exploring the history of the jewelry firm owned by the Lacloche family, attempts are made to contain the company within one entity – Lacloche Frères. In fact, there were several companies in which the Lacloche’s had involvement and many locations where...
Lalaounis
Ilias Lalaounis is an Athenian jewelry company known for its antiquity-inspired designs. In 1940, at age twenty, founder Ilias Lalaounis began his career by apprenticing at the prestigious Zolotas— the family business. Eventually, Lalaounis started his own...
Lalique
(1881 - present) In 1876 René Lalique (1860-1945) began his career as an apprentice to the eminent Parisian goldsmith Louis Aucoc. Though keen to learn the trade, Lalique was more interested in the general arts. He enrolled at L’École des Arts...
Liberty & Co.
(1876 - present) English jeweller famous for popularizing the Arts and Crafts style. In 1876, A.L. Liberty opened a shop that sold exclusively “exotic” objects from India, Japan, and other parts of the East. The inventory attracted artsy types,...
Marchak
Art Deco Marchak Desk Clock with Mother-of-Pearl and Camel Motif.Photo Courtesy of Frances Klein Classic Jewels. Born in Ignatovka just outside of Kiev, Joseph Marchak was apprenticed to a jeweler in 1868 at the age of 14. Within ten years he had opened his own shop...
Marcus & Co.
The American jewelry firm of Marcus & Co.is best known for their Art Nouveau jewelry and silver. In 1892, when Herman Marcus and his son William opened Marcus & Company at 857 Broadway in New York, Herman Marcus was already well known and respected by the New...
Marina B.
(1978 - present) Italian jewellery designer associated with the Bulgari firm. Marina Bulgari is from the third generation of family members brought into the business. When her father Constantino died in 1973, she and her sister Anna assumed central management and...
Marsh
The venerable San Francisco firm of G.T. Marsh & Co. was founded in 1876 by George Turner Marsh. Born in Richmond, Australia, Marsh was fifteen when his family decided to immigrate to the United States on a route that included a stop in Japan. Enamored of the...
Marshall Field & Company
Marshall Field & Company aka Marshall Field’s was a legendary department store in Chicago Illinois. The origin of Marshall Field’s can be found in a dry goods store opened in 1852 by Potter Palmer (P. Palmer & Co.). Arriving in Chicago in 1856, Marshall Field,...
Mauboussin
Mauboussin is a French jewellery firm famous for its Art Deco and Retro jewellery and objects. Though its roots go back to 1827, the firm first gained international acclaim in the 1920’s. Its rise into the ranks of Parisian fine jewellers is attributed to Georges...
Maurice Duvalet
Maurice Duvalet was a designer of French origin who designed jewelry for large houses as Van Cleef & Arpels and Rubel. He was famous for his ballerina brooches. Maker's Marks and Timeline:
Mellerio
The Mellerio family, jewelers and goldsmiths for generations, originated from the Lombardy region of Italy. Since 1613 they have been documented as goldsmiths and jewelers in France. The family firmly established themselves as important Parisian jewelers under the...
Mikimoto, Kokichi
Kokichi Mikimoto was born in Toba, Japan on January 25, 1858. Born of humble beginnings he was forced to make his way in the world at a very early age, leaving school at age 11 to sell vegetables to help support his family. Adversity, however, did not dim his...
Nardi
Venetian jeweller famous for his blackamoor or “Moretti” brooches. Carved from ebony or sardonyx, these brooches depict the head and shoulders of a turbaned “Moorish” male—the intended reference is often to Othello, the Moor of Venice, or to the valiant, warlike...
Oscar Heyman & Bros.
1912 - present Oscar Heyman & Bros. is an American jewelry firm and manufacturer that first gained attention in the 1920’s. In 1906, Oscar and Nathan Heyman immigrated to the United States from Latvia. Thanks to an...
Paul Revere
Paul Revere (1735-1818) was an American silversmith and goldsmith but is probably most well known as an American patriot. As a Boston goldsmith, Revere carried on the American tradition as not only a maker of jewelry, but also as a purveyor of jewelry. Revere's first...
Paulding Farnham
Paulding Farnham (1859-1927) was Tiffany & Co.'s preeminent nineteenth-century jewelry designer. In 1885, at the age of 26, G. Paulding Farnham joined Tiffany’s design department. Studying under Tiffany's chief jewelry designer, Edward Moore, Farnham quickly...
Raymond Yard Inc.
1922 to Present Day Raymond Yard began his career in the jewelry industry at the age of thirteen when he became a messenger boy at the well-established firm of Marcus & Co. in New York. Over the next twenty-four years, Yard firmly established himself...
René Boivin
René Boivin Tourmaline and Emerald Foxglove Brooch.Photo Courtesy of Christie's. The French firm of Boivin, founded in Paris during the 1890s by René Boivin (1864-1917) is considered to have produced some of the most original and finely wrought jewels of the twentieth...
Riker Bros.
The Riker Brothers jewelry firm was most notable as one of the few American companies to create plique-à-jour enamel jewelry, which included beautiful Art Nouveau styles, Japanesque water birds, and Renaissance style pendants and brooches. Early on they manufactured...
Rubel
American jeweler famous for his 1940’s angel and dancer brooches. Before he became its competitor, John Rubel worked for Van Cleef & Arpels. His company, John Rubel Co.was one of its Parisian manufacturing jewelers. In 1939, Rubel moved to New York to help produce...
Ruser
(1947-1969) The well-known Beverly Hills jeweler, William Ruser, started his career at the firm of Trabert & Hoeffer-Mauboussin in Atlantic City New Jersey, before being transferred to manage their Los Angeles location in the 1930's.Healy & Proddow,...
Schlumberger
Jean Schlumberger. Image Courtesy of The Times.I want to capture the irregularities of the universe. I observe nature and find verve. Jean Schlumberger (1907-1987) was born in Mulhouse, France into a wealthy textile family. Eschewing the...
Seaman Schepps
Seaman Schepps was an American jeweler famous for his Retro and 1950’s style jewelry. The son of East Side immigrants, Schepps traveled from New York to California around the turn of the century opening a store in Los Angeles that sold antiques, jewelry, and precious...
Shreve & Company
Venerable San Francisco jeweler. In 1852, George C. Shreve moved to San Francisco from New York with his nephew Samuel. They opened a jewelry store, The Shreve Jewelry Company, at Montgomery and Clay, hoping to capitalize on the city’s influx of wealth from the recent...
Shreve, Crump & Low
Arguably the oldest jeweler in America. Shreve, Crump and Low traces its roots to 1796 when watchmaker and silversmith John MacFarlane opened a novelty shop at 51 Marlborough Street, Boston.[ntoe]The Proddow book says 1769, but this must be a typo. The Shreve website...
Spratling
William Spratling, the well-known silversmith was born in 1900 in Sonyea, New York. In his early career, he taught Architecture at Auburn University in Alabama and was an Associate Professor of Architecture at Tulane University in New Orleans. Having spent time...
Sterlé
Sterle Sapphire, Diamond, Turquoise and Gold Floral Brooch. French jeweller famous for his 1940’s and 1950’s designs. In 1934, Pierre Sterlé opened a workshop on Rue St-Anne. Some of Paris’s finest jewellers patronized him,...
Taxco
Taxco is a small town in the southern Mexican state Guerrero. It once was a silver mining city and, although the mine is now almost depleted, it remains the main center for silver jewelry production in Mexico. Many famous Mexican manufacturers such as Spratling still...
The Horner’s Co.
Much like the guilds that existed throughout Medieval Europe, the Horner's Company oversaw the trade and processing of all horn around the city of London. Horn was an inexpensive and readily available product that had a vast variety of uses. It was used to produce...
Tiffany & Co.
In 1837, Tiffany & Co., the most renowned of American jewelers, opened its doors in New York City as Tiffany & Young. Its specialties were fancy goods and stationery. While initially carrying only a small selection of jewelry, most of which was costume, owners...
Tillander
The Finnish company, A.Tillander was founded by Alexander Tillander who, as a young boy at the age 11, was sent out to go and take up an apprenticeship at a barber in St-Petersburg. Things didn't go as expected and he ended up at a Finnish master goldsmith's workshop...
Trabert & Hoeffer-Mauboussin
On the heels of the famous 1925 L'Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris, American fashion was still firmly adhering to the French aesthetic. American jewelers did not participate in the exposition but they attended in droves to...
Van Cleef & Arpels
The genesis of Van Cleef & Arpels was sparked by the marriage of Alfred Van Cleef (son of a stone cutter) and Estelle Arpels (daughter of a precious stone dealer.) in 1896. Both sides of the family worked in the jewellery industry. Alfred's father, Charles, was an...
Verdura
Fulco Santostefano, Duke of Verdura was born in 1898 into an aristocratic family in Palermo, Italy. Most of his youth was spent in Sicily, and later in Venice, leading a pampered life amid generations old splendor. His fairy tale childhood included a veritable zoo...
Vever
Eminent French jewellery house famous for its Art Nouveau designs. The firm’s history dates to 1821 when founder Pierre Vever (1795-1853) opened a jewellery shop in Metz, France. Business flourished and Vever, as his grandson put it, "soon acquired a clientele among...
Webb
American jeweler famous for his sculptural work in the 1960’s. In 1948, David Webb and business partner Nina Silberstein opened David Webb, Inc. on 47th Street in New York City. Throughout the 1950’s, the firm supplied jewelry to upscale clients like Bergdorf...
Wiener Werkstätte
Historical Perspective The Wiener Werkstätte had its roots in a combination of key events in the lives of its founders, Josef Hoffmann and Koloman Moser, and the storm of change that was sweeping through the field of decorative arts during the fin-de-siècle. In Great...
Winston
Harry Winston (1896-1976), the American diamond dealer and jeweler nicknamed “The King of Diamonds", started his career at the age of fifteen working in his father’s California jewelry store. By the 1920s, he had established himself as an astute buyer of jewelry...
Zolotas
The firm of Zolotas, founded in Athens in 1895, is known for their jewelry designs inspired by Greek antiquity. Maker's Marks and Timeline