Edwardian Engagement Rings
The Edwardian era spanned for only a decade and was named after King Edward VII. (1901-1910) who was the son of Queen Victoria. Edward and his Danish wife Alexandria brought a new era of style after the long Victorian period. The style of jewelery was a mix of Victorian, Art Nouveau and Art Deco.
Engagement rings of the era were particularly fine in design with the use of white gold and platinum. Many designs followed the design of dress which made use of lots of lace and silk. Stones were set using a millegrain design which was achieved by the use of a fine wheel that was used to make the setting edge look like a row of small balls. Other settings were made by rubbing the metal over the edge of the stones
Many of the engagement rings of the era had a transition cut diamond as the use of more modern gem cutting equipment became available. To many the Edwardian cut diamond is the most favoured of all diamonds.
The designs of the time followed those of ribbons, bows and lace. Other gemstones that were popular during the Edwardian period are Aquamarine, Opal, Amethyst, Peridot, Sapphires, Rubies, Emeralds and Demantoid Garnets. The stone cutters became very adept at making calibre cut (square or baguette) which were set around central stones as in the example.
