Seaman Schepps Gold Cuff Bracelet

A scrappy, self-made artist who transformed turbo shells into decadent earrings and crystal chessmen into bold bracelets, Seaman Schepps (1881–1972) tirelessly worked his way up from the tenements of New York’s Lower East Side to become “America’s Court Jeweler.”

Born to immigrant parents who named him for the Seamen’s Bank for Savings that his mother could see from the hospital — or so the legend goes — Schepps dropped out of school at the age of 14 and never had any formal jewelry training. He later moved to California, where he opened his first jewelry shop in 1904. In 1921, he returned to New York to build on the success he’d begun to enjoy as a jeweler on the West Coast, but it wasn’t long before his Manhattan house, which counted Broadway stars and theater patrons among its clientele, was hit hard by the stock market crash of 1929. Schepps used this disruption to rethink his approach to jewelry, debuting a new store in 1934 on Madison Avenue, where he would make his mark in playful custom adornments.

While many high-end jewelers of his era focused on the purest and most valuable gemstones, Schepps chose his materials for their color and shape, elevating flawed stones others disregarded in collage-like formations involving unconventional materials such as fine wood, coral, seashells and flea-market finds. Passersby of his New York City shop could find a frog-shaped brooch carved from rosewood, a vintage snuff bottle broken into links for a bracelet and loose-drilled pearls plugged with diamonds. Schepps’s whimsical pieces found fans in fashion icons who appreciated his unique statements, including Doris Duke, Andy Warhol and the Duchess of Windsor.

Following Schepps’s death in 1972, his daughter, jewelry designer Patricia S. Vaill, ran the jewelry house for two decades before it was taken over by Jay Bauer and Anthony Hopenhajm of Trianon jewelry. Following the closure of the company’s Park Avenue store in November 2020, sales for Seaman Schepps is now based in its boutique location out of Palm Beach, Florida, where the legendary brand carries forth its founder’s spirited designs.

On 1stDibs, find a distinctive collection of vintage Seaman Schepps jewelry, including brooches, bracelets and other accessories.

There is no shortage of iconic bracelet designs out there: Cartier’s Love bracelet, the widely admired Panthère, the Croisillon bracelet crafted by Jean Schlumberger for Tiffany & Co., to name a few. And while you don’t necessarily need one of history’s most coveted versions of this accessory, you’re likely going to want at least a reliable collection of vintage cuff bracelets in your jewelry box.

Cuff bracelets are fashion staples. This stylish go-to — a rigid bracelet, open or outfitted with a clasp that snaps shut, understated and unadorned or enameled and flecked with gemstones — goes back thousands of years.

Cuffs were worn by Greek and Roman soldiers as they headed into battle as well as by the men and women of Ancient Egypt as statement-making jewelry. In ancient China, jade was considered the most precious of stones, and a jade cuff bracelet or bangle was associated with purity and goodness. Jewelers also employed jade, as well as coral and lapis lazuli, during the Art Deco period, finding inspiration in all kinds of influences and frequently working geometric motifs into their Art Deco cuff bracelets.

Today, people love how a bejeweled cuff bracelet elevates a simple jeans-and-T-shirt ensemble or that a minimalist one pairs with formal wear so well. Indeed, it’s a fine finishing touch whether you’re dining with friends in your neighborhood or pairing your silver or gold cuff with an elegant evening dress on the red carpet.

On 1stDibs, find a wide variety of vintage cuff bracelets today.