Carrera Y Carrera Hand Necklace

Legendary Spanish jewelry house Carrera y Carrera is based in Madrid but its sculptural and wholly distinctive pieces are known all over the world. Devotees of the company’s luxurious rings, necklaces, bracelets and other adornments have included royalty and a range of high-profile pop culture figures, and its artisans’ expertise in jewelry design spans a history of more than 130 years.

The origins of Carrera y Carrera can be traced to a small shop in 1885 founded by Madrid native Saturio Carrera. A student of lapidary — the practice of carving and shaping stones and minerals — Saturio established a modest jewelry business, and later, his son, José, who studied jewelry design in Paris, took up the family business and opened a new shop near the old center of Spain’s capital city. José passed the firm onto his nephews, and Carrera y Carrera garnered international acclaim when the Spanish royal family awarded them their first royal commission in 1960 to craft a bridal tiara to be presented to Doña Fabiola de Mora y Aragón on her wedding day. This tiara — the house’s most prestigious piece to date — raised Carrera y Carrera’s profile significantly.

During the 1970s, the luxury house first presented their designs at the epicenter of international jewelry, Baselworld. Carrera y Carrera became a household name for Americans of means thanks to a distribution partnership that landed its offerings in the Cellini boutique at New York City’s Waldorf Astoria. Celebrities such as Sofía Vergara, Jennifer Lopez and Madonna have all worn custom Carrera y Carrera jewels on the red carpet, and the brand’s work has been exhibited at the Armoury Chamber in the Kremlin. Each of the brand’s unique designs for watches and other jewelry — which frequently draw on animal forms, mythology and art — are still made by hand, just as its founder intended.

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We are fortunate to know much of the world’s long and dazzling history of necklaces, as this type of jewelry was so treasured that it was frequently buried with its owners.

Lapis lazuli beads adorned necklaces unearthed from the royal graves at the ancient Iraqi civilization of Sumer, while the excavation of King Tut’s burial chamber revealed a sense of style that led to a frenzy of Art Deco designs, with artisans of the 1920s seeking to emulate the elegant work crafted by Ancient Egypt’s goldsmiths and jewelry makers. 

In ancient times, pendant necklaces worn by royalty and nobles conferred wealth and prestige. Today, wearing jewelry is about personal expression: Luxury diamond necklaces exude confidence and can symbolize the celebratory nature of a deep romantic relationship, while paper-clip chain-link necklaces designed by the likes of goldsmith Faye Kim are firmly planted in the past as well as the present. Kim works exclusively with eco-friendly gold, and these fashionable, fun accessories owe to the design of 19th-century watch fobs. 

For some, necklaces are thought of as being a solely feminine piece, but this widely loved accessory has been gender-neutral for eons. In fact, just as women rarely took to wearing a single necklace during the Renaissance, men of the era layered chains and valuable pendants atop their bejeweled clothing. In modern times, the free-spirited hippie and counterculture movements of the 1960s saw costume-jewelry designers celebrating self-expression through colorful multistrand necklaces and no shortage of beads, which were worn by anyone and everyone. 

Even after all of these years, the necklace remains an irrefutable staple of any complete outfit. Although new trends in jewelry are constantly emerging, the glamour and beauty of the past continue to inform modern styles and designs. In a way, the cyclical history of the necklace differs little from its familiar looped form: The celebrated French jewelry house Van Cleef & Arpels found much inspiration in King Tut, and, now, their Alhambra collection is a go-to for modern royals. Vintage necklaces designed by David Webb — whose work landed him on the cover of Vogue in 1950, two years after opening his Manhattan shop — were likely inspired by the ornamental styles of ancient Greece, Mesopotamia and Egypt. 

On 1stDibs, browse top designers like Cartier, Tiffany & Co. and Bulgari, or shop by your favorite style, from eye-catching choker necklaces to understated links to pearl necklaces and more.