Sunday, February 17, 2008

Question from Mathilda - Pearl chokers in England

I am researching pearl necklaces. I can find lots of evidence for pearl chokers on the continent, and lots of evidence for long strings of pearls in England. Can anyone point me to evidence of pearl chokers in England?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

There are several sources for determining the existence of pearl necklaces and chokers in Tudor England. One way would be to find a copy of Yvonne Scarisbrick's superb book "Tudor and Jacobean Jewelry" [also spelled "Jewellery"]. You might also do an online search for the Cheapside Hoard, a large collection of jewelry from about 1610 that was dug up in London some years ago. Several sites have photos of many of the individual items from the Hoard. Also, read through the lengthy inventory of jewels requisitioned from the Royal Treasury by Jane Grey on 14 July 1553. That inventory is posted on my website at http://www.somegreymatter.com/janegreyjewelinventory.htm. Lastly, try looking through some books or websites on Tudor-era portraits to see whether any of the people in the various paintings are wearing pearl necklaces or chokers. Hope this helps.