Tuesday, January 27, 2009
DATING PASTE JEWELRY
Paste jewelry was first made in about 1767. You can tell 18th- and 19th-century paste from gemstones using these clues: Paste is warmer than gemstones and more easily scratched. Old paste was cut to fit the setting--the stones were not a consistent size. Settings for paste are usually closed at the back to protect the foil backing. The settings can be silver or pot metal, and they're rarely marked.
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2 comments:
...and of course everyone who's a bit of an antique themselves will recall Guy de Maupassant's vintage short story 'The Necklace'. That's where I heard tell of paste jewelry and learned a few life lessons as well...quite some time ago.
So, what's the difference between paste and rhinestones? How do you tell the difference, or is there one?
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