29 Items Tagged

Jewelry

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Wheelwright Museum

The country’s largest collection of southwestern jewelry, along with contemporary Native American art.

Sherborne St John, England

The Vyne

Alongside its 16th- and 17th-century architecture and interiors, this mansion houses an Ancient Roman ring that some believe may have inspired J.R.R. Tolkien.

Miners Rock Shop

A family-owned store specializing in minerals, geodes, gemstones, and more.

A holiday gift guide for wonderfully weird individuals.

A Curious Collection of Weird Gift Ideas

May your holidays dazzle and bewilder.

Danielle Hallock December 1, 2023

Ida McKinley’s Tiara

How did a former First Lady's tiara wind up being sold to a pawn shop on reality TV?

Two women pose wearing their intricate <em>mporo</em> necklaces.

Inside Kenya’s Women-Only Village Where Traditional Beaded Necklaces Are Symbols of Power

The women of Umoja no longer need a man to make their mporo marriage necklaces.

Nora Wallaya June 13, 2023

Iridescent green figeater beetles (Cotinis mutabilis) have long been used as adornments in cultures around the world.

Were These Beetles Once as Valuable as Gemstones?

Archaeologists believe jewelry made from the bugs was a coveted status symbol 2,000 years ago.

Shoshi Parks March 23, 2023

Replica

London, England

Memento Mori Pendant

The Ranger’s House exhibits fine mementos collected by Sir Julius Werner during the course of his life, including this infamous pendant.

The Khauwale Patankar sweet shop in Pune makes sugar jewelry every year.

In India, a Sweet Tradition Calls for Head-To-Toe Sugar Jewelry

Maharashtra's halwa dagine symbolizes hope for future blessings.

Shoma Abhyankar December 9, 2021

Curator Eleanor Jones Harvey marvels at the modern look of this 19th-century image, taken by an unidentified artist. He "could walk out of that photograph and you could have a conversation with him."

A Stunning Archive of the Work of Early Black Photographers

A new collection acquired by the Smithsonian is a window into Black history.

April White September 15, 2021

Gildardo and other amber miners work in the tunnels' high heat and humidity using basic tools like a pick, sledgehammer, and shovel.

Amber Mines in Mexico Offer Hope, Hazards, and 'A Perfect Time Capsule'

In Simojovel's network of dark tunnels, workers risk their lives to find coveted treasures that preserve a distant past.

Emiliano Ruprah April 28, 2021

Alice Paul's "Jailed for Freedom" and "Silent Sentinel" pins.

These Powerful Pins Honored Suffragists Who Were 'Jailed for Freedom'

A century ago, women picketing the White House were beaten and imprisoned for demanding their right to vote.

Reina Gattuso September 14, 2020

Salem, Massachusetts

Black Veil Shoppe of Drear & Wonder

Like stepping into a spooky fairy-tale, this shop carries the dark ideas of artists and other makers.

Bronze arm rings and armlets

Spillings Hoard

Buried beneath an unassuming Gotland farm was the largest collection of Viking silver, mostly of Islamic origin.

A Cairo goldsmith works on golden rings depicting a pharaoh.

The Secret Language of Cairo's Goldsmiths

Their words speak to the legacy of a lost community.

Shira Telushkin May 21, 2020

The ceremonial wedding ring found in the wall of a confectionary shop in Alsace.

These Hidden Treasures Hold Clues About Jewish Life in Medieval France

Found in 1863 but not displayed till now, they spent 500 years concealed in a wall.

Evan Nicole Brown July 31, 2019

The entrance decked out for the holidays.

Detroit, Michigan

Grand Trunk Pub

The grandiose interior of this bar speaks to its past as home to famous jewelers and railway offices.

The original Heinz pickle charm could hang from a lady’s brooch or a man’s pocket watch.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The First Heinz Pickle Charm

The souvenir got the company’s founder out of a pretty pickle at the World’s Fair.