Charm and wisdom goldsmith, originality and historical memory: the old jewels are an extraordinary opportunity to experience the excitement of past eras discovering priceless secret of timeless elegance.
The basis for a collection of antique jewellery today is an appreciation of the individual objects from two points of view: as works of art in their own right, and as expression of the culture of their time, which though on a miniature scale are valid examples of artistic styles no less than monumental sculpture and painting.
Whereas in antiquity personal ornaments were buried and have therefore been recovered by chance or systematic excavation, the survivalrate of jewels of post-classicl date is much smaller. They are inherently fragile, enamel cracks easily, stones fall out, and the precious materials which constitute much of their fascination also lead to their destruction as plunder in wartime, while fashion is the greatest enemy of all: yound wives being proverbially tempted to bring the family jewels up to date.
Yet in spite of so many hazards, enough jewellery has come down from the past to represent each successive period, particulary the nineteenth century when probably more jewels were worn that any other time in history.
The greatest prizes in an antique jewellery collection date from the Medieval and Renaissance periods, and these derive from excavations, shipwrecks, royal and ecclesiastical treasuries, and private sources.
Soprana jewelry has always paid special attention to the ancient jewelry, going to look for precious and special artifacts and providing the customer a good choice of earrings, rings, brooches, bracelets and pendants.
