Weiss Red Earrings
20th Century Clip-on Earrings
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Vintage 1980s Modern Beaded Necklaces
Vintage 1980s American Pendant Necklaces
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Vintage 1980s Multi-Strand Necklaces
Vintage 1980s American Contemporary Chain Necklaces
Silver Plate
Vintage 1960s American Etruscan Revival Drop Necklaces
Gold Plate
Vintage 1980s American Stud Earrings
Vintage 1970s American Link Bracelets
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Vintage 1950s American Modern Link Bracelets
Rhodium
Vintage 1980s American More Necklaces
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Vintage 1980s American Art Deco Choker Necklaces
Gold Plate
Vintage 1980s Choker Necklaces
Vintage 1970s French Modernist Pendant Necklaces
Vintage 1980s Chain Necklaces
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Vintage 1960s American Modern Choker Necklaces
Rhodium
Vintage 1980s American Modern Drop Necklaces
Gold Plate
Vintage 1980s American Modern Multi-Strand Necklaces
Silver Plate
Recent Sales
2010s German Stud Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold
Vintage 1960s American Modern Clip-on Earrings
Vintage 1950s American Post-War Clip-on Earrings
Crystal, Mixed Metal
Finding the Right earrings for You
In the United States, ear piercing didn’t really become popular until the 1950s and ‘60s, but our desire for a dazzling pair of vintage earrings has deeper roots than that. In fact, wearing earrings actually goes back thousands of years, and you can find many tangible connections between now and then in how we continue to talk about these treasured accessories.
Women wore ornamental earrings — studs and hoops at the very least — in Ancient Egypt, which is home to mines that are among the earliest sources of emeralds in the world. Emerald earrings are highly prized today, and their quality lies in their rich, saturated color. The highest-quality emeralds are green or bluish-green. Earrings worn by the affluent in early Roman civilizations were set with precious stones such as diamonds and pearls, and a clean-looking pop of pearl on the front of the lobe is as timeless as ever. Hoop earrings are imbued with symbolism and cultural significance for many, and on view in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Ancient Near Eastern Art Gallery is a pair of simple gold hoops from Mesopotamia dating to between 2600 and 2500 B.C.
Today, ear piercing is very popular all over the world, and, as a result, it is difficult to overstate how much everyone pines for a good pair of earrings — modernist drop earrings, glamorous Victorian hoops, geometrically complex chandelier earrings, you name it. Sure, jewelry trends and the fashion darlings of social media come and go, but earrings have a staying power that seems impenetrable: The still-strong love affair between British royals and Cartier earrings is more than a century old, glossy 1970s hoops from legacy houses such as Bulgari and Van Cleef & Arpels remain the statement makers they’ve always been and although people have been stacking earrings for many moons, the allure of an expertly mismatched stack of charms and studs still feels fresh and new.
While there is no shortage of modern earring designs to choose from, the classics, like coral earrings, Art Deco–style earrings and diamond drop earrings are still heavy hitters. On 1stDibs, find a wide range of antique, new and vintage earrings today.