Fashion Jewelry Choker Necklaces

Vintage fashion choker necklaces are elegant, alluring and stylish. Cameos, pearls, malachite and other stones can decorate these necklaces, which come in single or multiple strands. Whether it is a statement piece or a delicate chain, these short necklaces always stand out and turn heads.

Costume jewelry, which is also called fashion jewelry, is designed to accessorize with current fashions and is typically made with inexpensive materials. Whether you’re seeking a provocative fashion choker necklace or a similar accessory from the fine jewelry collection on 1stDibs that exudes elegance and grace, the offerings here present something for everyone. 

The history of the choker can be traced back thousands of years, with Sumerian examples discovered from 2600–2500 B.C. They endured as a popular form of adornment through the centuries, and during the French Revolution they took on a symbolic significance. Women wore ribbons around their throats to mark the passing of those killed by the guillotine. Soon, the plain ribbons were adorned with small cameos and other ornamentation.

European choker necklaces gained a salacious reputation in the 19th century when prostitutes were associated with black ribbons tied around the neck, such as the model in Édouard Manet’s Olympia (1863). Queen Alexandra, Princess of Wales, reversed the trend in the late 19th century by wearing a large pearl and diamond choker, reputedly to hide a scar.

Fashioned from gold, pearls and other precious stones and metals, chokers continued to be worn into the 20th century, alternately statements of wealth and rebellion. They experienced periods of revival in the 1920s, ’40s, ’70s and ’90s for both men and women.

Fashion chokers designed by Trifari, Kenneth Jay Lane, Miriam Haskell and others make a statement with an unmistakable air of femininity — find a collection of antique, new and vintage fashion choker necklaces today on 1stDibs.