Edwardian Period
General History
- Death of Queen Victoria.
- Edward VII Crowned King.
- McKinley Assassinated. Theodore Roosevelt Becomes President.
- Pan American Exposition Held in Buffalo NY.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Lever Safety Catch for Brooches Patented by Herpers Brothers of Newark.
Jewelry History
- Gustav Stickley Begins Publishing his Periodical, The Craftsman (Until 1916).
- Tiffany & Co. Exhibits at Pan-American Exposition, Special Hallmark (Beaver) Used on Exhibition Pieces.
General History
- Vienna Secession Exhibit.
- Edward VII's Coronation.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Flame Fusion Process for Synthesizing Rubies Presented in Paris by Verneuil, Published and Patented in 1904.
- Pink Variety of Spodumene, Kunzite, Discovered in California, Identified by and Named After George Frederick Kunz.
- Process for Setting Rhinestones or Metal in Celluloid Patented.
Jewelry History
- Joseph Asscher Develops the Asscher Cut for Diamonds.
- Cartier Opens a London Branch.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Black Opals Commercially Mined at Lightning Ridge, NSW, Australia.
Jewelry History
- Wiener Werkstätte Founded in Vienna, Austria by Koloman Moser and Josef Hoffman.
- Fabergé Opens London Branch, Selling Mostly ‘Gentlemen’s Rings’.
General History
- Louisiana Purchase Exposition Held in St. Louis.
- New York City Subway Opens.
- Construction on the Panama Canal Begins.
Jewelry History
- Louis Comfort Tiffany Exhibits his Jewelry for the First Time at the St. Louis Exposition.
- Marshall Field & Co. Chicago, Establishes a Craft Shop for Jewelry and Metalware (Closed 1950).
- Georg Jensen Opens his Silver-Smithy in Copenhagen, Denmark.
General History
- Albert Einstein Proposes his Theory of Relativity.
Discoveries & Innovations
- First Spherical Pearls Grown in Japan by Mikimoto.
- Cullinan Diamond Discovered in South Africa, Presented to Edward VII in 1907.
Jewelry History
- Forest Craft Guild Founded by Forest Mann in Grand Rapids, MI, USA.
- The Kalo Shop Begins Jewelry Making in Chicago.
- Henri Matisse and Other Fauvist Artists Exhibit at Salon d’Automne in Paris.
General History
- San Francisco Earthquake and Fire.
- Finland is the First Country to Grant Women’s Suffrage.
Jewelry History
- National Stamping Act Passed in the USA, Requiring Marking of Gold and Silver Content.
- Van Cleef & Arpels Founded in Paris.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Benitoite Discovered in California, Declared Official State Stone in 1985.
- Blue Verneuil Sapphire Becomes Available
Jewelry History
- First Exhibition of Cubist Paintings Held in Paris, Including Works by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque.
- Tiffany & Co. Establishes Art Jewelry Dept. with Louis Comfort Tiffany as Director.
Discoveries & Innovations
- First Spherical Cultured Pearls Patented by Mikimoto (First Grown in 1905, American Patent Granted in 1916).
- Synthetic Spinel Accidentally Produced by Flame Fusion Process.
- Henry Ford Introduces the First Mass-Produced Automobile, the Model T.
Jewelry History
- Couturier Paul Poiret Opens ‘Boutique Chichi’, Introduces Corsetless Dresses and the Vertical Line in Fashion (c.).
- A British Gemology Course is the Result of the Annual Meeting of the National Association of Goldsmiths of Great Britain and Ireland. First Course: 1912, First Diploma 1913.
General History
- Copyright Symbol © Introduced for Printed Works.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Leo H. Baekeland Patents First Entirely Synthesized Plastic, Bakelite.
- The Wright Brothers Begin Large Scale Manufacture of the Airplane (First Flight 1903, Patented in 1906.
- Synthetic Color Change Corundum First Created.
Jewelry History
- Cartier New York Opens.
General History
- Edward VII Dies, George V Becomes King of Great Britain.
- First Major American Women’s Suffrage Parade Held in New York City, Demonstration in Washington DC in 1913.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Eugene Morehouse Invents the ‘Bullet’ Safety Catch for Brooches, Patented for B.A. Ballou & Co. in 1911.
Jewelry History
- France Classifies Platinum as a Precious Metal, New Hallmark (Dog’s Head) Issued in 1912.
- Suffragist Jewelry in Green, White, and Violet (First Initials for ‘Give Women Votes’) is Popular in Britain and the USA.
General History
- George V Coronation.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Synthetic Blue Sapphires are Patented in the USA by Verneuil.
Jewelry History
- The Hope Diamond is Purchased by Ned and Evalyn Walsh McLean.
- George V has Cullinan I and II Set in Imperial State Crown and Scepters.
Jewelry History
- Cartier Introduces the Baguette-Cut for Diamonds.
- Oscar Heyman & Bros. Founded in New York.
- New Hallmark for Platinum (Dog’s Head) Issued.
General History
- World War I Begins.
- First Ship Though Panama Canal, Completed in 1913.
Jewelry History
- The First U.S. Fashion Show is Staged by Edna Wollman Chase, Editor of Vogue.
- Platinum is Declared a ‘Strategic Metal’ During Wartime, Use in Jewelry Diminished.
General History
- Panama-Pacific Exposition Held in San Francisco.
- Panama-California Exposition Held in San Diego.
Discoveries & Innovations
- U.S. Patent #1165448 Granted to Karl Richter of Pforzheim, Germany, for a White Gold Alloy of Gold, Nickel and Palladium.
- The Russian Revolution Begins.
Jewelry History
- David Belais of New York Introduces his Formula for 18k White Gold to the Trade, Known as 18k Belais.
- Cartier Designs the Tank Wristwatch, First Public Sale 1919.
General History
- World War I Ends.
- Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia Become the Republic of Czechoslovakia.
- First Regular Airmail Service, Between Washington DC and New York City Begins, New York to San Francisco in 1921.
Discoveries & Innovations
- Polish Chemist J. Czochralski’s “Pulling” Method for Gemstone Synthesis is Published.