Modern Cocktail Rings
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.
20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Opal, Gold, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Cocktail Rings
Lapis Lazuli, Rose Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Morganite, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
2010s Dutch Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Topaz, 14k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary European Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, 18k Gold
1980s Vintage Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Cocktail Rings
Ruby, Diamond, Platinum
1990s French Modern Cocktail Rings
Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Cocktail Rings
Garnet, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century Swiss Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Spanish Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Amethyst, Yellow Gold, 14k Gold, Gold
20th Century Japanese Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Jade, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s British Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Ruby, Diamond, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1950s Vintage Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
18k Gold
1950s British Vintage Modern Cocktail Rings
Quartz, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Tanzanite, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, White Gold
Late 20th Century American Modern Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Star Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Wh...
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Lapis Lazuli, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Jade, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Ruby, Platinum
2010s American Modern Cocktail Rings
Lapis Lazuli, 14k Gold
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Turkish Modern Cocktail Rings
Citrine, Topaz, 14k Gold, Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Cocktail Rings
Amethyst, Pink Sapphire, Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold
1980s German Vintage Modern Cocktail Rings
Ruby, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Chrysoberyl, Diamond, Platinum
1980s Vintage Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Go...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Cocktail Rings
Blue Diamond, Pink Diamond, 18k Gold
2010s Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Opal, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Diamond, White Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Yellow Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s European Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Tourmaline, Paraiba, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
2010s Hong Kong Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Kunzite, 18k Gold, White Gold
Early 2000s Modern Cocktail Rings
Tsavorite, Blue Sapphire, Pearl, Diamond, White Gold, 18k Gold
2010s Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Brown Diamond, Gold, 9k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Cocktail Rings
Emerald, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, White Gold, Rhodium
2010s American Modern Cocktail Rings
Tanzanite, White Diamond, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Opal, Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Ruby, Citrine, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Cocktail Rings
Black Diamond, White Diamond, Diamond, White Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Enamel, Platinum, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold
1990s Italian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, White Gold
Late 20th Century Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Topaz, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Modern Cocktail Rings
Other, Sterling Silver, Enamel
2010s Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Moonstone, White Diamond, Gold, Rose Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Tanzanite, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Cocktail Rings
Emerald, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Indian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
2010s Turkish Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
1950s Vintage Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
1990s American Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, 14k Gold