In the ancient city of Ur
In the ancient city of Ur, located in southern Mesopotamia between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, jewelry became a significant product to craft and trade. The people of Ur created amulets, necklaces, ankle bracelets and cylinder seals made of fine gold leaf and set with brilliantly colored agate, carnelian, lapis lazuli and jaspter stones. This jewelry was very popular and both men and women elaborately bejeweled themselves. Gem carving or glyphic art was popularized as children and women wore rings with beautifully carved stones. Mesopotamian jewelers invented some of the techniques still used in jewelry making and metal work today such as granulation, filigree, cloisonné and engraving. The motifs and designs depicted on Mesopotamian jewelry included cones, spirals, grapes and leaves. The jewelry of the times was worn by humans and used additionally to embellish idols and statues in reverence.
Jade is one of the toughest gems around. Not the hardest, toughest. That means it can take a lot of abuse before anything happens. Warm soapy water is the best to clean it. What you must watch out for is bye in the jade. Many unscrupulous bealers enhance the color with bye. This is especialy true of violet jade. Basically the only thing that could damage jade is other pieces of jade or diamonds. So keep them stored separately in plactic bags and don’t allow them to touch each other.
Keep jade out of direct sunlight for long periods of time and keep from drastic tempurature changes. There are many good books on jade and its care. You can go to your local library or look put jade on the internet.
Typically, jade bracelets come cut as a solid bangle or as a flexible bracelet with several sections of jade held by metal end caps and joints between pieces. With your bracelet, adding the spacer is a good idea but you will have to have two spacers, not one.
Since the solid jade is not flexible, the bracelet will need to be cut on opposite sides so each half may be connected with a spacer. You will need to find someone with a fine blade diamond saw to cut the jade. These saws are motorized using a 6″ or so circular blade of thin design. Steel tools simply will not do the job. You want a fine and neat cut so the ends are parallel and match nicely.
If a jeweler cannot do this(most will not have fine diamond rock saws) one suggestion is to contact a local rock and gem shop. The rock and gem shops cater to folks who like to do their own stone polishing and a diamond saw is one of the basic tools of the hobby. Ask the rock shop if they can recommend someone has a “thin kerf” rock saw. People who do faceted stones or cut opal are most likely to have the diamond saw with a fine(thin) blade and may cut the bracelet for you.
Wholesale jewelry store can provide the perfect choice for wedding jewelry.
Tags: diamond engagement rings, fashion jewelry, men and women, romantic gift, wholesale sterling silver jewelry
