Modern Beaded Necklaces
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 Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Ruby, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, Black Pearl, Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, ...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Silver, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Black Pearl, Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s British Modern Beaded Necklaces
Cultured Pearl
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Emerald, Onyx, Opal
2010s British Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Sterling Silver
Late 20th Century American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, White Gold
20th Century Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Mid-20th Century German Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, 9k Gold
1950s American Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Carnelian, Emerald, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Black Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1970s British Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1950s Czech Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Freshwater Pearl, Natural Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Natural Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
South Sea Pearl, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
20th Century French Modern Beaded Necklaces
1960s Italian Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
1950s German Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Gold, Gilt Metal, Mixed Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Black Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Beaded Necklaces
Spinel, 18k Gold
2010s Dutch Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Indian Modern Beaded Necklaces
Iolite, Topaz, Blue Topaz, 14k Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Black Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Yellow Gold
1960s Austrian Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Crystal
2010s European Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s French Modern Beaded Necklaces
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Platinum
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Coral, Diamond, Peridot, 18k Gold, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
1980s American Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Aquamarine, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
1980s Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
1960s British Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Lapis Lazuli
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 14k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
1990s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
2010s American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Moonstone, Rainbow Moonstone, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century French Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Gold
2010s French Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold
2010s Japanese Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
1980s Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
1990s Modern Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century Dutch Modern Beaded Necklaces
Tanzanite, Yellow Gold
20th Century Dutch Modern Beaded Necklaces
Apatite, Yellow Gold
1960s Unknown Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Emerald, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century Dutch Modern Beaded Necklaces
Apatite, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Dutch Modern Beaded Necklaces
Aquamarine
Late 20th Century Dutch Modern Beaded Necklaces
Gold
1970s American Vintage Modern Beaded Necklaces
Mixed Metal
20th Century American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Coral, Onyx, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold