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.
1960s American Vintage Modern Jewelry
Pearl, Peridot, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Iolite, Peridot, Multi-gemstone, Citrine, Amethyst, Gold, Yellow Gold, 1...
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Jewelry
Pink Sapphire, Peridot, White Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Jewelry
Amethyst, Peridot, Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
1990s Italian Modern Jewelry
Amethyst, Citrine, Diamond, Peridot, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Peridot, Morganite, Diamond, Platinum, Rose Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Amethyst, Peridot, Citrine, Topaz, Multi-gemstone, Gold, Yellow Gold, 18...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Peridot, Topaz, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Jewelry
Peridot, Rhodium, Sterling Silver, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Jewelry
Peridot, Gold, Rhodium, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Multi-gemstone, Amethyst, Citrine, Peridot, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Aquamarine, Carnelian, Chalcedony, Citrine, Diamond, White Diamond, Emer...
2010s Indian Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary British Modern Jewelry
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire,...
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Peridot, Multi-gemstone, Garnet, Amethyst, Topaz, Gold, Yellow Gold, 18k...
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Amethyst, Topaz, Peridot, Multi-gemstone, Garnet, Citrine, Diamond, Gold...
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Modern Jewelry
Peridot, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, 18k Gold
2010s Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, Platinum
2010s Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Modern Jewelry
Sapphire, Garnet, Tsavorite, Topaz, Yellow Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Blue...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Tourmaline, Peridot, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Sapphire, Peridot, Diamond, 14k Gold, White Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Tsavorite, Quartz, Peridot, Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Tourmaline, Tanzanite, Sapphire, Peridot, Morganite, Garnet, Diamond, Am...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Peridot, Topaz, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Spinel, Multi-gemstone, Peridot, Ruby, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Pink Sap...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Mandarin Garnet, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Spinel,...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite, Topaz, Tourma...
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Citrine, Peridot, Topaz, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Citrine, Diamond, Peridot, Topaz, Amethyst, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Topaz, Multi-gemstone, Peridot, Ruby, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapp...
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Jewelry
Peridot, Amethyst, Gold, Rose Gold, 18k Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, Platinum
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Opal, Peridot, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Jewelry
Amethyst, Citrine, Diamond, Peridot, 18k Gold, Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
2010s American Modern Jewelry
Amethyst, Peridot, 14k Gold, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Modern Jewelry
Diamond, Peridot, Quartz, Topaz, 14k Gold
2010s British Modern Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Tanzanite...
