Saturday, January 11, 2025

Puzzling Evidence: A Suite of Findings & Beads in Circa 1940s Jewelry Attributed to Miriam Haskell

 

The previous blog post discussed a distinctive chain and clasp that shows up often in “Chinese Lantern” charm jewelry circa World War 2. 

https://www.beadiste.com/2024/12/puzzling-evidence-distinctive-chain.html

This post is an extended discussion of the suite of distinctive findings that accompany the beads used in these designs.  These findings – and the ways they are used - are so unique to these necklaces, bracelets, and brooches that it is difficult to believe they did not originate from a single workshop. 

Lore has it that it was the Miriam Haskell workshop that produced this jewelry, but none of the pieces are signed.  The clasps are often inconsistent with the supposed use by Haskell of only knobless spring ring clasps; a significant number of the pieces feature knobbed spring rings.  Are these replacements, or original to the pieces?  Did wartime metal restrictions encourage the use of whatever clasps were still available from the findings factories?

eBay vendor SouthernAntiqueJewels currently has on offer two of the pieces shown in the slides. Photos used with permission.

https://www.ebay.com/str/southernantiquejewels

Link to informative article about Larry Vrba at Morning Glory Jewelry:

https://www.morninggloryjewelry.com/articles/article/lawrence-larry-vrba-jewelry/

Click on photos for a larger view. Open in a new tab for increased magnification.













































































































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