Featured Multi strand carnelian necklace

Hello,

Anybody recognize this necklace or is it an unsigned beauty ? The red beads and the bale test as carnelian, the purple beads are amethyst.... thank you !

 

That's really stunning.
Would really make a statement on a simple black dress.

 

Wow!. Can we see the back of the gold sections? (Not that I have a clue who made it, I'm just being nosey)

 

Someone got inspired by Egyptian jewellery, there.

 

Fans!!!
Gorgeous necklace, Xristina. The turquoise beads could also be turquoise, or don't they test as such?

It is for now, and may have to stay that way.

 

I can see this having been sold in a museum shop.

 

Agreed.

 

They have same pattern front and back.. and I think they are glass, not metal.

I too think they are turquoise, but the tester can't read them.. the needle doesn't move when I try.

That might very well be, I agree with Ownedbybear.. it looks like Egyptian revival..

Thank you, everybody !

 

They could be block turquoise (is that the right name?). It is pressed stone, which is dyed a turquoise colour. They also make small heishi beads from it, for cheaper versions of Southwest jewellery.

 

Thank you !

 

I can too, but it would be clearly marked if it had been. Egyptian inspired is probably the correct description, not Egyptian repro nor Egyptian Revival, which is a time period as much as a style.

Ancient jewellery routinely incorporated glass as readily as gem stones, as it was just as valued as most common stones. The bright blue beads are probably glass. Cobalt is one of the oldest glass colors.

 

Not necessarily.
If they commissioned jewelry to coincide with an exhibit and they were the only ones selling it, then yes it would be clearly marked.
However, I was just perusing the online Smithsonian Catalog, the Winterhur Catalog, and the Williamsburg catalog. From what I can see most of their jewelry is not solely made for their stores.
In fact the Smithsonian's jewelry doesn't even look that high end, particularly for the prices asked.
https://www.smithsonianstore.com/ca...c=4.100159&sortby=ourPicksAscend&pp=72&page=1

 

The MMA's is a little more interesting
https://store.moma.org/accessories/jewelry?view=grid&sz=all

 

I only looked closely at a few of the things that come up first, but they all look more like the sort of thing the American Museum of Natural History would sell as examples of the minerals used rather than as ethnographically inspired. See a couple do have some kind of tag but most are probably China or other Asian origin. Different sort of beast than this 'statement piece.' Would not be too surprised to find out this is an unmarked book piece for one of the name costume jewellery makers.

 

That is the web site of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), not MMA, the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

https://store.metmuseum.org/catalogsearch/result/?q=egyptian

 

Oh yes you're right. Thanks for the correction.
I always get the two mixed up. Sorrry.

 

I have known native New Yorkers to make the same error. Nearly played havoc one time when I was trying to settle on a place to meet with someone from Queens.