Modern Drop Earrings
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.
1970s Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Morganite, 14k Gold, Rose Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s Unknown Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Amethyst, Turquoise, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Drop Earrings
Jade, Gold, 18k Gold
1980s American Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, Pearl, Pink Sapphire, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Topaz, Diamond, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Moonstone, Pearl, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Platinum
2010s Turkish Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 14k Gold
20th Century Unknown Modern Drop Earrings
Alexandrite, Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Topaz, Blue Topaz, 14k Gold, Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Amethyst, Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, Pink Sapphire, Amethyst, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s American Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, Pink Sapphire, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, Blue Topaz, Topaz, 14k Gold
1990s Unknown Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold, Platinum
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1990s French Modern Drop Earrings
Mixed Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, Pink Sapphire, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Opal, Fire Opal, Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Moonstone, Pearl, 14k Gold
1980s American Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
Brass, Gold Plate
1980s European Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
Enamel, Mixed Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Morganite, Gold, Rose Gold
20th Century Unknown Modern Drop Earrings
Alexandrite, Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, Pearl, 14k Gold, Rose Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modern Drop Earrings
Silver, Sterling Silver
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
20th Century Unknown Modern Drop Earrings
Coral, Diamond, Turquoise, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, 14k Gold, Silver, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Thai Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Rose Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
1960s American Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
Mixed Metal
1980s Italian Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
Pearl, Turquoise, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, 14k Gold
Early 2000s European Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pearl, Aquamarine, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Drop Earrings
Moonstone, Gold, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
20th Century French Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, Onyx, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Moonstone, Pearl, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Drop Earrings
Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Indian Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, Silver
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
Coral, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Australian Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Opal, Tsavorite, Platinum
1970s Vintage Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Drop Earrings
Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Thai Modern Drop Earrings
Blue Topaz, Peridot, Garnet, Citrine, Amethyst, Yellow Gold, White Gold,...
2010s Swiss Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
2010s Swiss Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Amethyst, Tourmaline, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, Pearl, Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Drop Earrings
Amethyst, Citrine, Diamond, Multi-gemstone, Rhodolite, Gold, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Modern Drop Earrings
Ruby, Gold, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Platinum
2010s European Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Zircon, Silver, Sterling Silver
2010s Indian Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Drop Earrings
Topaz, Blue Topaz, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s European Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century American Modern Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
Mid-20th Century American Modern Drop Earrings
Coral, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold