Over the course of its long history, the legendary Danish silverware firm Georg Jensen has partnered with a range of designers, widening its jewelry offerings from delicate filigree to chunky modern pieces.
Although Georg Jensen today is known the world over for its silver, the brand’s namesake founder began his creative career in a different medium, training as a ceramicist and sculptor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts before opening his own porcelain studio. It is that artistic background, however, that laid the foundation for Jensen’s eventual silversmithing — and a thread that continues today with the company’s distinctively sculptural, ornately detailed jewelry.
In 1901, Jensen left his ceramics practice to apprentice for Mogens Ballin, the master silversmith who also had a background as a painter. By 1904, he would establish Georg Jensen, now a global brand with more than 1,000 stores worldwide and a Royal Warrant of Appointment to the Queen of Denmark.
Like much of the work of the Art Nouveau movement of which he was a part, Jensen’s early creations erased the barrier between art and craft, bridging form and function for pieces that demonstrated masterful artistry in both. His silverware was immediately a commercial success and he was a pioneer in using steel in cutlery.
Jensen’s jewelry pieces — his pendants, rings and more, crafted most often in silver during the early 1900s — display a celebration of nature, rendering flora and fauna in silver, gold and gemstones. Fish and full-bloom daisies are charming motifs in his vintage sterling-silver brooches and necklaces, while semiprecious stones such as malachite and coral were integrated as embellishments.
Creatives with Georg Jensen jewelry in their portfolios include architect Edvard Kindt Larsen; designers Arne Jacobsen, Jean Nouvel and Ilse Crawford; artist Henning Koppel and silversmiths Vivianna Torun and Ibe Dahlquist. Such a transcendence of medium — a continuation of Art Nouveau sensibility — has resulted in over a century of stunningly creative, varied designs.
In a country with no shortage of design talent, Georg Jensen has long been somewhat of a national treasure — and sometimes even a political statement. In 1940, five years after Jensen died, Arno Malinowski’s “King’s Emblem” pin became widely recognized as a symbol of resistance to the Nazi regime. Its influence is global, too: In 2014, Murray Moss penned Georg Jensen: Reflections, a Rizzoli-published retrospective marking more than a century of business for the brand.
Find all manner of authentic Georg Jensen jewelry on 1stDibs, including vintage sterling-silver bracelets, decorative rings and more.
Georg Jensen Sterling Silver 107B Tumbler/Beaker/Vase
By Georg Jensen
Located in Washington Depot, CT
Vintage sterling silver beaker/tumbler cup/vase by Georg Jensen pattern #107B. No monogram or engraving This simple and elegant tumbler features a flare design with a lightly hamme...
Sterling Silver
Diminutive Kay Ivankovic Sterling Silver & Opal Gemstone Vase
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A wonderful 1980's handmade sterling silver vase. By Kay Ivankovic. Kay Ivankovic, the high-level contemporary British silversmith, is known for her flowing, organic forms. This hand-chased vase...
Opal, Sterling Silver
$2,700Sale Price|40% Off
Sterling Silver European Estate Rococo Hammered Frame with Cherubs
Located in New York, NY
The Following Item we are offering is a Beautiful European Estate Rococo Sterling Picture Frame with Hand Hammered Embossed Cherubs holding Wreaths of Garland and Floral Motifs. Sign...
Sterling Silver
Georg Jensen Sterling Silver 5 Piece Tea Service in Pattern 80
By Georg Jensen
Located in Brisbane City, QLD
A five-piece tea and coffee service in sterling silver with ebony handles and finials in Georg Jensen's pattern 80, designed in 1915, hallmarked for a post-1945 manufacture. While Jensen's reverence for traditional Danish design and interest in themes of nature were often married in equal part to the popular Art...
Silver, Sterling Silver
Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Flower Pot Vase, Circa 1950, 3.5in
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Mount Kisco, NY
Charming sterling silver flower pot pattern number 24037 made and signed by TIFFANY & CO. Measures 3-/12 inches high with a 3-1/2 inches diameter across the top. Made of heavy ga...
Sterling Silver
Tiffany & Co. Unusual Sterling and Copper Vase
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Riverdale, NY
Late Victorian sterling vase by Tiffany & Co. The body of this sterling vase has been overlaid in copper upon which another layer of silver has been added. 4 ornate etched floriform...
Sterling Silver, Copper
$124,900
H 17.5 in Dm 9 in
A Rare Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver and Mixed Metal Python Snake Trophy Vase
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Long Island City, NY
A Rare Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Python Trophy Vase: A Masterpiece of Mixed Metal Artistry, circa 1880 Presenting a truly exceptional Tiffany &a...
Sterling Silver, Mixed Metal
$2,625Sale Price|65% Off
Rare Important 19th Century Museum Qty 3 Piece Russian Sterling Silver Tea Set
By Unbranded
Located in New York, NY
The Following Item that we are Offering is this RARE 19th Century Russian Sterling Silver Tea Set. Each Piece is Stamped and Signed "84" and Labeled 1901. Set is Outstandingly done w...
Sterling Silver
$1,250 / set
H 1.66 in Dm 1.03 in
Pair of Danish Modern Georg Jensen Sterling Silver Salt & Pepper Shakers # 627
By Georg Jensen
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A rare pair of Georg Jensen sterling silver salt and pepper shakers. Model No. 627. Designed by Ove Brobeck. A rare and fine pai...
Sterling Silver
Georg Jensen, Sterling Silver Comport by Johan Rohde
By Georg Jensen
Located in Brisbane City, QLD
This rather beautiful sterling silver comport was made by Georg Jensen in a design by the famed craftsman Johan Rohde. The piece was first designed betw...
Sterling Silver
Vintage Georg Jensen Sterling Silver Ornamental 21 Sugar Spoon
By Georg Jensen
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine vintage ornamental sugar spoon. By Georg Jensen. In sterling silver. Model no. 21. Designed by Georg Jensen. With the post-1945 factory mark. Simply a great spoon from ...
Sterling Silver
Antique Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Hair Receiver Hammered Vanity Jar
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Westport, CT
Antique Tiffany & Co. sterling silver hair receiver, made in New York circa 1914–1930. This hand-hammered vanity piece features a squat bulbous form with a fitted lid and central...
Sterling Silver
Art Deco Period Georg Jensen Sterling Silver Footed Bowl by Johan Rohde
By Georg Jensen
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine sterling silver footed bowl or compote. Designed by Johan Rohde for Georg Jensen. Model no. 17A Simply a wonderful bowl! Date: 1915 - 1930 Overall Condition: It is in ove...
Sterling Silver