Descriptionary

hair jewelry popular in the 19 th century, a style of jewelry that incorporated locks of hair, often braided, from loved ones or from strangers who sold their hair for cash. The hair would often be displayed in a small glass enclosure on a brooch, but it was also woven into bands for bracelets and watches and other jew­elry items. Some hair jewelry was worn as a memorial to a deceased loved one and, often surrounded with gold or gems, could be expensive to make.

hallmark a mark or stamp placed on gold, silver, or platinum by an assay office to authenticate purity, as a protection against fraud.

hammered dimpled with hammer blows, for a tex­tured effect.

heishi made originally by the Pueblo Indians, beaded necklaces made of ground shells, with modern versions also ornamented with turquoise, serpentine, or jet.

helix piercing an earring piercing in cartilage of the upper ear, instead of in the lobe.

hemp fibrous material taken from a plant in the cannabis family, used with beads to make bracelets and necklaces.

herringbone chain a chain consisting of slanting links, reminiscent of a herring spine.

high polish having a mirrorlike finish.

hoop earring any large, circular-shaped earring, with or without hanging ornaments.

inclusion in a gemstone, any natural flaw, such as a bubble, crack, carbon spot, feather, or cloud.

inlay an imbedding of gemstones, mother of pearl, or other jewel material in a groove or hollowed-out section.

intaglio carving or engraving in a gem.

iridescent having bright, rainbowlike colors, as a pearl.

Irish diamond a diamond in name only, actually a rock crystal.

irradiation subjecting gemstones to X-rays or gamma rays in order to create different colors.

ivory the yellowish-white material cut from the tusks of elephants and formerly used in jewelry, now illegal.

jabot pin a brooch or pin used to attach a jabot to a shirt.

jade glass an imitation jade made from green glass.

japanned having a finish of shiny, black lacquer.

jet a dense, black coal used in mourning jewelry. Also known as black amber.

Job's tears the dried, polished, and painted seeds from a tropical grass plant, used as beads in necklaces and bracelets.

karat a measure of the purity of gold: 24 karat is pure gold, 18 karat is 75 percent gold, 14 karat is 58.3 percent gold, and 10 karat is 41.7 percent.

labret a pierced ring, ball, gem, or other orna­ment worn anywhere in or around the lip. See Monroe.

lapidary the art of cutting and polishing stones for jewelry. Also, one who does this.

lavaliere a chain or necklace from which a pendant is hung.

loupe a special magnifying glass used by jewelers to check gems for color, cut, clarity, and flaws.

Madison piercing a piercing where a stud, gem, or ball is attached just at the bottom of the neck.

Madonna see Monroe.

marina chain a chain made up of flat, diamond- shaped links.

marquise cut a gemstone cut, characterized by an oval shape with pointy ends.

matte a flat or nonshiny finish.

maw sit sit stunning green gem discovered in Burma in the 1960s; it is never faceted but generally Cabo- chon cut or cut into beads.

Medusa pierced through the center of the philtrum above the upper lip, a labret stud, with the ball rest­ing in the hollow part of the lip.

melange a mix of diamond sizes.

melee a class of small diamonds weighing less than a carat.

mesh a woven wire chain.

Mexican jade not actual jade but stalagmitic calcite dyed green.

mill grain edge an edge cut with ridges or beads.

Monroe designed to mimic the beauty spot made famous by Marilyn Monroe, a piercing that holds a stud, metal ball, or jewel just above the lip and off to one side. Also known as a Crawford, after Cindy Craw­ford, the model, and a Madonna, after the pop singer.

mother-of-pearl the iridescent shell layer from the inside of a pearl-bearing mollusk.

mount to seat or place a stone in a setting.

mounting the framework on which a gem is set.

mourning jewelry any jewelry appropriate to be worn when grieving the loss of a loved one. Tradi­tionally, the components are black or dark and are made of jet, but hair jewelry may also be worn as a permanent memorial.

nacre the lustrous substance secreted by an oyster to cover over an irritant and which eventually forms a pearl.

night emerald not a real emerald, but another name for peridot.

nipple ring a captive bead ring pierced through a nipple.

nose stud a single stone or pearl attached to the nostril.

nugget any unshaped stone or a lump of precious metal, such as gold.

olive an olive-shaped bead.

opera necklace any very long necklace, up to 34 inches (86 cm), sometimes worn doubled over.