More than 100 years ago, we were known as The Jewelers’ Circular Weekly. That’s right: weekly.
What caught our eye about this particular issue? The artwork. First there’s the gorgeous cover, so reminiscent of the work of Art Nouveau painter Alphonse Mucha. (It could be one of his posters of Sarah Bernhardt!) But we were also intrigued by the extensively varied, often heavily illustrated full-page ads. Among the products promoted: diamond brooches by J. Ziegler & Co.; “perfect turquoise” by Toltec Gem Mining Co. (a woman, in black and white, wearing blue beads); the Sternau coffee machine (which depicts “the noble Turk, the swarthy Arab, and the indolent Mexican,” all java lovers); “fancy flatware” by Wm. B. Durgin Co.; hat pins by Whiting & Davis; cigarette cases by Kerr & Thiery (“makers of hollow ware, toilet goods and novelties in silver”); tortoiseshell combs by Day, Clark & Co.; A.C. Becken’s eyeglass display stand, featuring a life-size “chemically prepared wax” face; and “imitation diamond goods” by Fishel, Nessler & Co. “Don’t scorn a stone because it is not ‘real.’ ” Some things never change.
(Photograph by Nestor Cervantes)
