Panim Illusion

Known as one of Southeast Asia’s leading jewelry manufacturers, PANIM redefines elegance by using heritage European-cut diamonds and fine gemstones to resurrect jewelry styles popular in the Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian eras.

PANIM was established in 1998 in Hong Kong and Mumbai by Madhavji Dholiya, whose family has been associated with high-quality jewelry making and design for more than 40 years.

Since its founding, PANIM has focused on designing and creating exquisite diamond and precious gemstone jewelry featuring unique stone cuts and shapes. For instance, several of its chain necklaces, chokers and drop necklaces are designed with briolette-cut diamonds. Briolette is among the oldest gem-cutting techniques, comprising a teardrop shape with finely cut, triangular facets.

PANIM’s uncommon fashion and cocktail rings, bands, drop earrings, chandelier earrings, studs and bracelets also feature briolette diamonds and gemstones, as well as other striking cuts like round- and rose-cut stones set in 18-karat white, yellow or rose gold.

Although PANIM’s jewelry represents timeless, classic designs, the company also has several pieces inspired by contemporary and modern styles. Since the start of the 21st century, PANIM has shifted its jewelry-making process to include diverse styles such as Art Nouveau, Art Deco and retro.  

Throughout the years, PANIM has exhibited its jewelry at shows and fairs worldwide, including Baselworld in Geneva, Switzerland.

On 1stDibs, discover a range of PANIM necklaces, rings, earrings and more.

Rooted in centuries of history of adornment dating back to the ancient world, modern jewelry reimagines traditional techniques, forms and materials for expressive new pieces. As opposed to contemporary jewelry, which responds to the moment in which it was created, modern jewelry often describes designs from the 20th to 21st centuries that reflect movements and trends in visual culture.

Modern jewelry emerged from the 19th-century shift away from jewelry indicating rank or social status. The Industrial Revolution allowed machine-made jewelry using electric gold plating, metal alloys and imitation stones, making beautiful jewelry widely accessible. Although mass production deemphasized the materials of the jewelry, the vision of the designer remained important, something that would be furthered in the 1960s with what’s known as the “critique of preciousness.”

A design fair called the “Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes” brought global attention to the Art Deco style in 1925 and gathered a mix of jewelry artists alongside master jewelers like Van Cleef & Arpels, Mauboussin and Boucheron. Art Deco designs from Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels unconventionally mixed gemstones like placing rock crystals next to diamonds while borrowing motifs from eclectic sources including Asian lacquer and Persian carpets. Among Cartier’s foremost design preoccupations at the time were high-contrast color combinations and crisp, geometric forms and patterns. In the early 20th century, modernist jewelers like Margaret De Patta and artists such as Alexander Calder — who is better known for his kinetic sculptures than his provocative jewelry — explored sculptural metalwork in which geometric shapes and lines were preferred over elaborate ornamentation.

Many of the innovations in modern jewelry were propelled by women designers such as Wendy Ramshaw, who used paper to craft her accessories in the 1960s. During the 1970s, Elsa Peretti created day-to-night pieces for Tiffany & Co. while designers like Lea Stein experimented with layering plastic, a material that had been employed in jewelry since the mid-19th century and had expanded into Bakelite, acrylics and other unique materials.

Find a collection of modern watches, bracelets, engagement rings, necklaces, earrings and other jewelry on 1stDibs.