Antique Emerald Brooch
Late 19th Century French Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, Natural Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1890s Unknown Belle Époque Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Gold, 18k Gold
Early 20th Century American Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
White Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
Early 19th Century British George III Antique Emerald Brooch
Opal, Gold, Yellow Gold, 14k Gold, Rose Gold
1850s Antique Emerald Brooch
20th Century Edwardian Antique Emerald Brooch
Ruby, Diamond, Garnet, 18k Gold
1920s French Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Platinum
Early 1900s Art Nouveau Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Ruby, 14k Gold, Silver
Late 19th Century English Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Opal, Ruby, Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Silver
1890s Unknown Art Nouveau Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, White Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
20th Century Edwardian Antique Emerald Brooch
Blue Sapphire, Cultured Pearl, Emerald, Ruby, White Diamond, Platinum
Early 20th Century Unknown Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
1860s British Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald
1860s British Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Silver
1790s American Edwardian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Gold, 14k Gold, Silver
1890s French Edwardian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Yellow Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Silver
Early 20th Century French Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, 18k Gold, Enamel
1920s Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
1860s Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Topaz, 18k Gold
1920s French Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Platinum
Early 20th Century Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
Early 20th Century Unknown Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Gold, Platinum
Early 20th Century European Art Nouveau Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Brass
Early 1900s Belle Époque Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Pearl, Gold, Yellow Gold, Platinum
Late 19th Century Unknown Late Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, 18k Gold, Silver
Late 19th Century British Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, 15k Gold, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 19th Century Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1890s European Renaissance Revival Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, 18k Gold
Mid-19th Century Unknown Artist Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
Early 1900s American Belle Époque Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Topaz, 18k Gold
1910s Unknown Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1850s French Napoleon III Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Gold, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
Early 20th Century Antique Emerald Brooch
1910s French Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
1850s Italian Napoleon III Antique Emerald Brooch
Gold, Enamel
Early 20th Century Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
1910s Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Natural Pearl, Gold, Silver, Silver Plate
Early 20th Century British Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
1910s Russian Edwardian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, Gold, White Gold
Late 19th Century Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Silver
1870s French Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Platinum
1920s Unknown Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, White Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
Late 19th Century Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
1910s Unknown Artisan Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 15k Gold
Early 20th Century Russian Belle Époque Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald
Late 19th Century American Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Natural Pearl, 18k Gold
Early 20th Century Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
1890s Late Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Platinum
1870s French Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Pearl, Gold
1910s Edwardian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Yellow Gold, Platinum
Late 19th Century Art Nouveau Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Gold, Silver
Late 19th Century Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Gold, Silver
Early 20th Century Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Gold
1860s Unknown Early Victorian Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, 15k Gold, Silver
1920s English Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Emerald, Diamond, Platinum
1920s Unknown Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, White Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
Early 20th Century Unknown Art Deco Antique Emerald Brooch
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
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Antique Emerald Brooch For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Antique Emerald Brooch?
The Legacy of Emerald in Jewelry Design
No one liked emeralds and emerald jewelry more than Elizabeth Taylor (or her alter ego, Cleopatra). Emeralds were first discovered in Egypt around 330 BC. The stone’s name originated from the ancient Greek word for green, “smaragdus.” According to the Gemological Institute of America, “Emeralds from what is now Colombia were part of the plunder when 16th-century Spanish explorers invaded the New World. The Incas had already been using emeralds in their jewelry and religious ceremonies for 500 years. The Spaniards, who treasured gold and silver far more than gems, traded emeralds for precious metals. Their trades opened the eyes of European and Asian royalty to emerald’s majesty.”
There are numerous myths attributed to the emerald’s spiritual powers, like placing an emerald under your tongue will allow you to see the future. But be careful not to swallow the birthstone for May, or that future won’t be so bright!
There are many important (read: large) emeralds in museum collections around the world. The Patricia Emerald, named after the miner’s daughter, is a 632-carat dihexagonal (or 12-sided) crystal that was discovered in Colombia in 1920 and now resides at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington has in its possession the Hooker Emerald, a 75.47-carat Colombian stone. That emerald had been acquired in the 16th or 17th century by Spanish conquistadores and shipped to Europe. It later belonged to Abdul Hamid II, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (1876–1909), who wore it on his belt buckle. Purchased at auction by Tiffany Co. in 1911, the Hooker Emerald was set into a tiara and featured in the New York World’s Fair “House of Jewels” exhibit in 1940. Today, it is part of a brooch, also designed by the jewelry house.
On 1stDibs, find a range of antique and vintage emerald jewelry and watches that includes emerald rings, emerald necklaces and other accessories.
Finding the Right Brooches for You
Vintage brooches, which refer to decorative jewelry traditionally pinned to garments and used to fasten pieces of clothing together where needed, have seen increasing popularity in recent years.
While jewelry trends come and go, brooches are indeed back on the radar thanks to fashion houses like Gucci, Versace, Dior and Saint Laurent, all of which feature fun pinnable designs in their current collections. Whether a dazzlingly naturalistic Art Nouveau dragonfly, a whimsical David Webb animal, a gem-studded bloom or a streamlined abstract design, these jewels add color and sparkle to your look and a spring to your step.
Given their long history, brooches have expectedly taken on a variety of different shapes and forms over time, with jewelers turning to assorted methods of ornamentation for these accessories, including enameling and the integration of pearls and gemstones. Cameo brooches that originated during the Victorian age are characterized by a shell carved in raised relief that feature portraits of a woman’s profile, while 19th-century micromosaic brooches, comprising innumerable individually placed glass fragments, sometimes feature miniature depictions of a pastoral scene in daily Roman life.
At one time, brooches were symbols of wealth, made primarily from the finest metals and showcasing exquisite precious gemstones. Today, these jewels are inclusive and universal, and you don’t have to travel very far to find an admirer of brooches. They can be richly geometric in form, such as the ornate diamond pins dating from the Art Deco era, or designer-specific, such as the celebrated naturalistic works created by Tiffany Co., the milk glass and gold confections crafted by Trifari or handmade vintage Chanel brooches of silk or laminated sheer fabric. Chanel, of course, has never abandoned this style, producing gorgeously baroque CC examples since the 1980s.
Brooches are versatile and adaptable. These decorative accessories can be worn in your hair, on hats, scarves and on the lower point of V-neck clothing. Pin a dazzling brooch to the lapel of your blazer-and-tee combo or add a cluster of smaller pins to your overcoat. And while brooches have their place in “mourning jewelry,” in that a mourning brooch is representative of your connection to a lost loved one, they’re widely seen as romantic and symbolic of love, so much so that a hardcore brooch enthusiast might advocate for brooches to be worn over the heart.
Today, find a wide variety of antique and vintage brooches for sale on 1stDibs, including gold brooches, sapphire brooches and more.
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