The term vintage jewellery covers many different periods of time, whereas antique jewellery is 50 years old or more. Among the different periods of time which the term’ vintage’ encompasses are Georgian, Victorian, Art Nouveau, Edwardian and Art Deco.

Georgian rings were made between the years 1714 and 1837. They were all handmade and incorporated nature themes such as birds and plants. They often used precious stones in their designs, and their rarity makes them both expensive and difficult to find.

Victorian jewellery was produced in the reign of Queen Victoria of England between 1837 and 1900. Victorian engagement rings used a wide range of gemstones including diamond, garnet, sapphire, peridot, onyx and amethyst. Yellow gold was very popular as a metal for rings of this period. In a similar way to Georgian rings, Victorian engagement rings often were themed on nature. Settings were made to look like leaves, with gemstones set to resemble a flower amongst the leaves. The snake or serpent ring was also popular, consisting of two snakes entwined representing the couple. The LOVE ring and the DEAREST ring were also very popular. These rings used the first letter from the name of each gemstone to create the words love or dearest.

Art Nouveau rings where produced from around 1895 to 1915. The engagement rings of this period often had designs based on flowers or butterflies and had a very feminine appearance with flowing curves.

Edwardian engagement rings were produced during the reign of King Edward VII of England from 1901 to 1910. The rings of this period frequently used platinum with filigree and millegrain work. Diamonds were popular in this era in addition to rubies and emeralds.

Art Deco jewellery was produced from the 1920s through to the 1940s. The rings of this period were quite big and bold, using large gemstones or large clusters of gemstones such as diamonds. Popular ring metals of this time were rhodium, palladium and platinum. Vintage Art Deco engagement rings are one of the most popular types of jewellery today.

Vintage and antique engagement rings can be found on sale at specialist jewellers on the Internet, or at antiques dealers and antiques fairs. Cheap antique rings are hard to find, but the quality of these rings is usually very high.

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