Pair of Earrings with Snap-On Covers, ca. 1882–85
American
Diamonds, gold, and enamel; L. (each earring) 7/8 in. (2.2 cm); Diam. (each cover) 1/2 in. (1.3 cm)

Locket, 1706
American (Boston, Massachusetts)
Gold, crystal, and hair; L. 1 in. (2.5 cm)

Pin, ca. 1890
Tiffany and Company (American, est. 1837)
New York City
Gold, enamel, and diamond; L. 3 1/4 in. (8.3 cm)

Cameo, ca. 1835
George W. Jamison (American, d. 1868)
New York City
Helmet-conch shell, enamel, and yellow, rose, and green gold; L. 2 1/2 in. (6.4 cm)

Brooch, ca. 1900
Marcus and Company (American, 1892–before 1950)
New York City
Gold, peridot, diamonds, pearls, and enamel; L. 2 1/2 in. (6.4 cm)

Purchase, Susan and Jon Rotenstreich Gift, 2001 (2001.234a–d; 2000.532; 2001.330; 2000.562; 2001.238)

The Museum recently purchased an important collection of American jewelry made between 1706 and 1915. This comprehensive group of seventy-three objects and sets includes several exceptional examples of the jeweler's art, including those pictured here. The heart-shaped locket with light brown hair beneath a faceted crystal is the earliest piece in the collection. A type of mourning jewelry, it is inscribed "ob^t 20 / of April / 1706" above an engraved skull. The helmet-conch-shell cameo with a bust of Andrew Jackson, cut in about 1835 by George W. Jamison, is an elegant tribute to the seventh president. Reflecting the "cameo fever" that first swept Europe in the late eighteenth century, it is inscribed with Jackson's oft-quoted slogan, THE UNION / IT MUST AND / SHALL BE / PRESERVED. Beauty and practicality are combined in the diamond-drop earrings with removable "coach" covers, which served to protect and conceal the valuable stones. The boldly scrolled, gold-mounted peridot brooch with diamonds and a pendant pearl, marked by the outstanding New York firm of Marcus and Company, harks back to Renaissance designs. A diamond dewdrop shimmers amidst the realistically rendered enamel petals of a flower-form pin, one of several exquisite Tiffany and Company pieces in the Fales Collection.