Modern Jewelry
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.
2010s American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, Yellow Gold, Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Oceanic Modern Jewelry
Coral, Pearl, Gold, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century European Modern Jewelry
South Sea Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, Diamond, White Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Freshwater Pearl, Silver
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, White Gold, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Australian Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Turquoise, Gold, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, Gold
2010s Dutch Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century European Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Oriental Pearl, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Yellow Gold, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Blue Topaz, Cultured Pearl, Topaz, Peridot, Freshwater Pearl, Pearl, Dia...
Late 20th Century American Modern Jewelry
Cultured Pearl, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, White Gold
2010s American Modern Jewelry
Pearl, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 14k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Diamond, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Jewelry
Opal, Pearl, Tourmaline, Fire Opal, Gold, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold
2010s Dutch Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Zircon, 18k Gold
1990s German Modern Jewelry
Citrine, Pearl, 24k Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1970s French Vintage Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Turkish Modern Jewelry
Garnet, Pearl, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Italian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Emerald, Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Natural Pearl, Rubelite, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Enamel
2010s Italian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Italian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Brown Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
Mid-20th Century American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Quartz, Silver, Sterling ...
2010s Dutch Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Italian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, White Diamond, Black Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Jewelry
Diamond, South Sea Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold
Mid-20th Century Hawaiian Modern Jewelry
Coral, Freshwater Pearl, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Italian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary North American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Jewelry
Crystal, Pearl, Gold, Gilt Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s French Modern Jewelry
Cultured Pearl, Diamond, White Diamond, Opal, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Italian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Dutch Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Modern Jewelry
Diamond, White Diamond, Pearl, Rock Crystal, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Dutch Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Pink Sapphire, Tourmaline, Sapphire, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Sapphire, 14k Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Pearl, Ruby, 18k Gold
1960s Vintage Modern Jewelry
Diamond, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Hong Kong Modern Jewelry
Jade, Pearl, Yellow Gold, 14k Gold
Late 20th Century European Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
South Sea Pearl, Oriental Pearl, Natural Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, Y...
2010s Italian Modern Jewelry
Pearl, White Diamond, Diamond, White Gold, 18k Gold
