Andrew Grima Agate

A widely respected postwar British-Italian jewelry designer, Andrew Grima is often regarded as the father of modern jewelry. Grima was entirely self-taught and unafraid to take bold risks. His pioneering designs of the 1960s — set with amethysts, emeralds and other vibrantly colored stones — included cocktail rings, pendant necklaces and clip-on earrings in sculptural and eye-catching styles that sharply contrasted with the adornments of the era.

Grima was born in Rome in 1921, but he grew up in London. Though he came from an artistic family, he initially studied mechanical engineering at the University of Nottingham and served in the Royal Engineers during World War II. Upon returning from the war, in 1946, Grima joined his father-in-law's London jewelry business. He started as an accountant but quickly began experimenting with jewelry design.

By the mid-1960s, Grima's innovative techniques and abstract designs had catapulted him to fame, and his creations were in high demand. He opened his own exclusive gallery in London's West End, which featured an opulent spiral staircase. Candy-colored gems had captivated magazine editors and jewelry lovers everywhere, and Grima's prestigious clientele included Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, artist Barbara Hepworth and the British Royal family. In the 1970s, Grima also expanded into watchmaking, creating the "About Time" collection for Omega and a line of gold watches for Pulsar.

Grima received numerous awards over his career for his contributions to jewelry design. He was the winner of the De Beers Diamonds International Award a record number of 11 times and he was the only jeweler to win the Duke of Edinburgh Prize for Elegant Design. Today, his high-profile collectors include the likes of Miuccia Prada and Marc Jacobs, and his work is held in the collections of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths and the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Grima passed away in 2007, but his wife and his daughter carried on his legacy. Every year, they enlist a team of specially selected goldsmiths to produce a small collection of original jewelry in his unique style.

Today's designers and collectors recognize the importance of Grima's work and its impact on the jewelry industry. In 2018, New York jewelry dealer Mahnaz Ispahani Bartos featured Grima's groundbreaking designs in her "London Originals: The Jeweler’s Art in Radical Times" exhibit.

On 1stDibs, find vintage Andrew Grima rings, brooches and earrings.