Jewellery

This is a timeline of jewellery production from the first uses of metal in history to the Renaissance. See also Land's End Airport. Among uncommonly used materials are fish scales (Video clip). There is a theme park at Land's End. The smallest type of beads commonly used are known as seed beads; these are the beads used for the "woven" style of beaded jewellery. The phrase Land's End to John o' Groats is frequently heard both as a literal journey and as a metaphor for great or all-encompassing distance. Beads may be large or small. The name has a particular resonance because it is so often used in outlining the length of Britain when races, walks and charitable events take place between Land's End and the Scottish village John o' Groats (the most northeasterly settlement in mainland Britain).

Beaded jewellery commonly encompasses necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and belts. Offshore, midway between Land's End and the Isles of Scilly, is the supposed location of the mythical lost land of Lyonesse, referred to in Arthurian literature. These may be made of many different substances including glass, gemstones, wood, shells, clay and polymer clay. The Longships, a few miles out, is a serpentine and quartz island. Beads are commonly used in jewellery. Visible from Land's End is the Longships Lighthouse. Other commonly used materials include glass, such as fused glass or enamel; wood, often carved or turned; shells and other natural animal substances such as bone and ivory; and natural clay and plasticine clays, such as polymer clay. Land's End (Cornish name: Pedn a Wollaz) is a headland on the Penwith peninsula, located near Penzance, Cornwall, at the extreme south-western tip of the British mainland.

Dozens more are also commonly used. Common gemstones that are used include diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and opals. The silver used in jewellery is often sterling silver. Most gold alloys used in jewellery range from 10K to 22K gold, while platinum alloys range from 900 (90% pure) to 950 (95.0% pure).

Common metals used for jewellery include gold, platinum or silver. A variety of precious gemstones, coins or other precious items can be used, often set into precious metals. Jewellery, particularly when made with precious materials, is generally considered valuable and desirable. .

Personal adornment seems to be a basic human tendency. Jewellery in various forms has been made and worn by both sexes in almost every (if not every) human culture, on every inhabited continent. Jewellery can also be symbolic, as in the case of Christians wearing a crucifix in the form of jewellery, or, as is the case in many Western cultures, married people wearing a wedding ring. Some cultures have a practice of keeping large amounts of wealth stored in the form of jewellery.

Further tracing leads back to the Latin word "jocale", meaning plaything. The word is derived from the word "jewel", which was anglicised from the Old French "jouel" in around the 13th century. However, jewellery can and has been made out of almost every kind of material. Costume jewellery is made from less valuable materials.

Jewellery (Jewelry in American spelling) comprises ornamental objects worn by persons, typically made with gems and precious metals. Elias Akaoui -- founder of Akaoui stores in Cairo, Egypt. Sotirios Voulgaris -- founder of Bulgari. Charles Lewis Tiffany -- founder of Tiffany & Co..

Tom Shane -- Founder of The Shane Company and radio advertisement personality. William Calley -- the convicted Vietnam war criminal is a jeweler in Columbus, Georgia. Paolo Bulgari -- Chairman of Bulgari. AD 1500 - The Renaissance.

AD 400 - A shale die is found in Britain. AD 400 - Pewter jewellery is made. AD 300 - Lead becomes more common in places. AD 150 - Tin rings found in Nubia.

AD 100 - Sulphur fills hollow gold items throughout the Roman Empire. AD 50 - Start of the Roman period, where addition of silver to gold becomes almost unknown. 300 BC - Red Coral popular in Celtic jewellery. 300 BC - Diadems are first seen.

325 BC - Animal or human-headed hoop earrings were popular. 350 BC - Use of combined punches and dies of bronze. 400 BC - Greeks using Beeswax for filler in repoussé. 500 BC - Iron in use in Britain.

500 BC - Hafted hammers were being used in some parts. 575 BC - In Greece, jewellery is still very rare. 700 BC - World's oldest coinage in Lydia. 900 BC - The Greeks have iron.

1000 BC - The start of true engraving. 1000 BC - Persian sheet bronze work 0.05mm thick. 1400 BC - Very copper rich gold alloys popular in Egypt. 1400 BC - Philistines have iron.

1400 BC - Deliberate addition of zinc to copper in Canaan. 1400 BC - Egypt Amarna period, using resin and mud for repoussé backing. 1500 BC - Earplugs and earrings become popular in Egypt. 2000 BC - Use of patterned punches.

2500 BC - Gold wires are characterised by seam lines that follow a spiral path along the wire. 2500 BC - The intentional addition of silver and copper to gold. 2500 BC - True iron production technology in Near East. 2500 BC - Egyptians using copper/lead alloys.

2600 BC - Beaded wires began to be used. 2000 BC - First signs of the swagging technique. 3000 BC - The Middle East employ semi-mass-production. 3000 BC - Egypt and Iran makeing simple hammered iron beads.

3500 BC - Gold makes an appearance in Egyptian jewellery. 3450 BC - Use of natural zinc/copper alloy in Egypt. 4000 BC - Smelting technology for copper in Egypt and Iran. 5000 BC - Uses of copper in Egypt.

7000 BC - Uses of copper in Anatolia, Iran and Eastern Europe.