Jewelry Photography

At some point in prehistory, someone noticed that certain stones near fire pits melted and, once cooled, could be shaped into something new. While the earliest uses were likely for weaponry, it wasn’t long before those same materials were fashioned into ornaments. Brass, bronze, gold, and silver armbands, rings, earrings, headpieces, buttons, and pins have existed for centuries.

Even earlier, humans discovered beautiful stones in streams, their natural colors and reflections catching the light. Perhaps artisans making weapons found that some stones weren’t suited for blades but instead revealed stunning colors when chipped. It was only a matter of time before someone—an artisan or a chieftain—thought to combine metal with these stones, giving birth to jewelry as we know it today.