Modern Bangles
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.
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Bangles
Diamond, Silver
1990s French Modern Bangles
Diamond, Yellow Gold
2010s Italian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
2010s Austrian Modern Bangles
Emerald, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Rhodium, Sterling Silver
2010s Italian Modern Bangles
Diamond, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Bangles
White Diamond, Palladium
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Bangles
White Diamond, Topaz, Aquamarine, Platinum, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Bangles
Diamond, Silver
2010s Austrian Modern Bangles
White Diamond, Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Bangles
Rhodium, Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Silver
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Bangles
Yellow Gold
2010s Italian Modern Bangles
Aquamarine, Sapphire, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Bangles
Crystal, Base Metal
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Bangles
Diamond, White Diamond, Gold, 24k Gold, Yellow Gold, Platinum
1970s British Vintage Modern Bangles
Diamond, Opal, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Bangles
Blue Sapphire, White Gold, Palladium, Rhodium, Sterling Silver
1960s Danish Vintage Modern Bangles
Sterling Silver
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s American Modern Bangles
Emerald, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Bangles
Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Bangles
Crystal, Base Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, Emerald, Moonstone, 14k Gold, Silver, Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Bangles
Onyx, Emerald, Diamond, Coral, Enamel, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Bangles
Diamond, White Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Bangles
Diamond, White Diamond, White Gold
1990s Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, Yellow Gold, 14k Gold, Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
2010s Italian Modern Bangles
Brown Diamond, Moonstone, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Bangles
Crystal, Base Metal
2010s European Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold
2010s Modern Bangles
Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s German Modern Bangles
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s American Modern Bangles
Diamond, White Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold, Gold
2010s Lebanese Modern Bangles
Diamond, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bangles
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Bangles
White Diamond, Sapphire, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Bangles
Diamond, Yellow Gold
2010s American Modern Bangles
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Bangles
Diamond, Gold, 14k Gold
2010s German Modern Bangles
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Indian Modern Bangles
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Italian Modern Bangles
Malachite, Tsavorite, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Bangles
Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Colombian Modern Bangles
Diamond, Emerald, Opal, 14k Gold
1990s American Modern Bangles
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Enamel