pendants 'Jewellery' ( or /ˈdʒuːələri/) or 'jewelry' (see American and British
English spelling differences) is an item of personal adornment, such as a
necklace, ring, brooch or bracelet, that is worn by a person. Jewellery may be
made from any material, such as gemstones, precious metals or shells, besides
other materials, depending on cultural differences and availability of
materials. Jewellery may be appreciated because of geometric or other patterns,
or meaningful symbols. Earrings and other body rings are also considered to be
jewellery, while body art is not. Also, items affixed to a garment, such as
buttons, are not considered to be jewellery, even if they are unusual and highly
decorative. Also, items such as belts and handbags etc. are not considered to be
jewellery, and are considered to be accessories. The word jewellery is derived from the word jewel, which was Anglicised from the
Old French "jouel" circa the 13th
century.[[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/jewel jewel. (n.d.).]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Retrieved on August 7, 2007, from the
Dictionary.com website.] Further tracing leads back to the Latin word
"jocale", meaning plaything. Jewellery is one of the oldest forms of body
adornment; recently found 100,000 year-old beads made from Nassarius shells,
are thought to be the oldest known jewellery.[[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/5099104.stm
Study reveals 'oldest jewellery'], BBC News, June 22, 2006.] Jewellery is sometimes seen as wealth storage or functionally as holding a
garment or hair together. It has from very early times also been regarded as a
form of personal adornment. The first pieces of jewellery were made from natural
materials, such as bone, animal teeth, shell, wood and carved stone. More exotic
jewellery was probably made for wealthy people or as indications of social
status. In some cases people were buried with their jewellery. Jewellery has been made to adorn nearly every body part, from hairpins to toe
rings and many more types of jewellery. While high-quality jewellery is made
with gemstones and precious metals, such as silver or gold, there is also a
growing demand for art jewellery where design and creativity is prized above
material value. In addition, there is the less costly costume jewellery, made
from lower value materials and mass-produced. Other variations include wire
sculpture (wrap) jewellery, using anything from base metal wire with rock
tumbled stone to precious metals and precious gemstones.
|