estate jewelry previously owned or used jewelry.
facet the smooth plane made by a strategic cut in a gemstone. Most stones are multifaceted.
fancy cut any gemstone cut other than a brilliant cut, such as emerald, heart, pear, or baguette.
fantasy cut a freeform cut with multiple facets.
faux French word for fake or imitation, as a faux pearl.
feather in a gemstone, a flaw.
fede ring a ring characterized by two hands clasped together, as a Claddagh ring.
fetish a charm or amulet, sometimes believed to have magical properties.
fibula a brooch that works like a safety pin to attach clothing.
figaro chain a chain having alternating round and oval links.
filigree any delicate, open metalwork, usually of fine wire.
findings all fasteners, hooks, clasps, posts, and attaching components used in jewelry.
finish the texture or lack thereof on the surface of a piece of jewelry.
fire any streaks of color seen within a gemstone.
flaw any imperfection, such as a crack, in a gem- stone.
fob a short chain that attaches to a pocket watch.
freeform any cut or faceting other than a standard type.
French ivory imitation ivory made from plastic.
freshwater pearl an irregularly shaped pearl formed by a mussel taken from a lake or river.
full cut describing any gemstone having 58 facets.
gallery an open, decoratively pierced mounting, reminiscent of the woodwork on the sterns of old sailing ships.
gem any precious or semiprecious stone, usually cut and polished and used in jewelry.
gilding a thin layer of gold.
gilt gold plating.
girdle the middle portion of a faceted gem or diamond, between the crown and the pavilion.
glyptography the art of engraving and carving gem- stones.
gold a soft and pliable precious metal widely used in jewelry. It is usually alloyed with other metals to add strength and durability.
gold filled a misleading term, actually made of base metal covered by gold.
gold plate a surfacing or coating of electroplated gold.
gold tone not necessarily made of gold but colored gold.
gold washed having an extremely thin layer of gold.
grain in diamonds or pearls, a unit of weight, with four grains equaling one carat.
greasy descriptive term for a kind of luster found most commonly on jades and soapstones.
green gold gold that has been alloyed with silver, copper, and zinc, giving it a greenish hue.
grey gold gold alloyed with 15 to 20 percent iron.
gypsy setting any setting in which the gemstone has been sunk into the surrounding metal, so that it is level with the surface.
hair jewelry popular in the 19 th century, a style of jewelry that incorporated locks of hair, often braided, from loved ones or from strangers who sold their hair for cash. The hair would often be displayed in a small glass enclosure on a brooch, but it was also woven into bands for bracelets and watches and other jewelry items. Some hair jewelry was worn as a memorial to a deceased loved one and, often surrounded with gold or gems, could be expensive to make.
hallmark a mark or stamp placed on gold, silver, or platinum by an assay office to authenticate purity, as a protection against fraud.
hammered dimpled with hammer blows, for a textured effect.
heishi made originally by the Pueblo Indians, beaded necklaces made of ground shells, with modern versions also ornamented with turquoise, serpentine, or jet.
helix piercing an earring piercing in cartilage of the upper ear, instead of in the lobe.
hemp fibrous material taken from a plant in the cannabis family, used with beads to make bracelets and necklaces.
herringbone chain a chain consisting of slanting links, reminiscent of a herring spine.
high polish having a mirrorlike finish.
hoop earring any large, circular-shaped earring, with or without hanging ornaments.
inclusion in a gemstone, any natural flaw, such as a bubble, crack, carbon spot, feather, or cloud.
inlay an imbedding of gemstones, mother of pearl, or other jewel material in a groove or hollowed-out section.
intaglio carving or engraving in a gem.
iridescent having bright, rainbowlike colors, as a pearl.
Irish diamond a diamond in name only, actually a rock crystal.
irradiation subjecting gemstones to X-rays or gamma rays in order to create different colors.
ivory the yellowish-white material cut from the tusks of elephants and formerly used in jewelry, now illegal.
jabot pin a brooch or pin used to attach a jabot to a shirt.
jade glass an imitation jade made from green glass.
japanned having a finish of shiny, black lacquer.
jet a dense, black coal used in mourning jewelry. Also known as black amber.
Job's tears the dried, polished, and painted seeds from a tropical grass plant, used as beads in necklaces and bracelets.
karat a measure of the purity of gold: 24 karat is pure gold, 18 karat is 75 percent gold, 14 karat is 58.3 percent gold, and 10 karat is 41.7 percent.
labret a pierced ring, ball, gem, or other ornament worn anywhere in or around the lip. See Monroe.
lapidary the art of cutting and polishing stones for jewelry. Also, one who does this.
lavaliere a chain or necklace from which a pendant is hung.
loupe a special magnifying glass used by jewelers to check gems for color, cut, clarity, and flaws.
Madison piercing a piercing where a stud, gem, or ball is attached just at the bottom of the neck.
Madonna see Monroe.
marina chain a chain made up of flat, diamond- shaped links.
marquise cut a gemstone cut, characterized by an oval shape with pointy ends.
matte a flat or nonshiny finish.
maw sit sit stunning green gem discovered in Burma in the 1960s; it is never faceted but generally Cabo- chon cut or cut into beads.
Medusa pierced through the center of the philtrum above the upper lip, a labret stud, with the ball resting in the hollow part of the lip.
melange a mix of diamond sizes.
melee a class of small diamonds weighing less than a carat.
mesh a woven wire chain.
Mexican jade not actual jade but stalagmitic calcite dyed green.
mill grain edge an edge cut with ridges or beads.
Monroe designed to mimic the beauty spot made famous by Marilyn Monroe, a piercing that holds a stud, metal ball, or jewel just above the lip and off to one side. Also known as a Crawford, after Cindy Crawford, the model, and a Madonna, after the pop singer.
mother-of-pearl the iridescent shell layer from the inside of a pearl-bearing mollusk.
mount to seat or place a stone in a setting.
mounting the framework on which a gem is set.