We All Want Something Beautiful

When I was a kid growing up in Boston, I spent a great deal of my childhood in the Museum of Fine Arts located in the back bay area. In the late 60s it was not a problem for a young teenager to take a train and a bus or two to get anywhere in the city. This venture would be something unheard of in this day and age.

Yeah, I was a weird kid. During summer vacation my friends would be playing football, baseball or hanging out at the beach. I’d spend days exploring the museum. I was fascinated by all the beauty and spectacular craftsmanship that went into all the exhibits. 

I had already been apprenticing to be a goldsmith by age twelve so the jewelry created by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans all fascinated me - then I learned about the famous goldsmiths from the Italian Renaissance. An Italian Goldsmith named Benito Cellini was one of my favorites - what he did with gold and silver was comparable to how Michelangelo brought marble to life. When I visited Florence, Italy and was face to face with his famous sculpture of David, I was in awe of the piece. I swear the muscles appear to flex and blood is pumping through the veins of stone (Michelangelo actually sent Cellini a letter of praise about one of his works.)  

Cellini’s pieces were also awe inspiring; besides being a talented goldsmith he was also a talented sculpture and painter.

How the ancient Egyptians made gold jewelry was another of my passions for many years. They supposedly had crude tools yet they were capable of melting, forging and forming the metal into hair-thin wire and pounding it so flat to create see-through gold-leaf sheets! The Ancients were also able to drill through miniscule quartz beads and string them, a near impossible task to perform today, even with modern tools. They also may have been the first creators of fake glass gems, surrounded by sand; they somehow created colored melted glass and even shaped them for use in ceremonial artifacts. King Tut’s death mask was an example of the glass “gems.”

There are still unanswered questions about how they acquired the skills to achieve what today is considered impossible yet still created what they did over 2,000 years ago. It is still puzzling experts today. 

The Boston Museum had tons of jewelry on exhibit; I could spend an hour staring at one piece, a habit I still have when I visit museums all over the European continent. Just ask my wife who dreads even the thought of accompanying me to any museum, no matter how famous. 

The Louvre Museum in Paris was on my bucket list; my first visit was around fifteen years ago and I only had time to see a tenth of the exhibits. I returned a couple of years later and spent three days there while my wife shopped and sipped champagne in the outdoor cafes on the Champs-Élysées…ouch!

We all want something beautiful. In my case, I have an unlimited supply of beautiful jewelry I offer to my clients in the form of 18kt.or 14kt. gold including platinum incorporated with diamonds and precious gemstones - even pearls.

Jewelry has always been an art form through the centuries. At first it only was a form of wealth and a thing of beauty to be seen, worn and cherished for future generations.

As the years passed you no longer had to be royalty to possess a piece of nice jewelry. In previous centuries, a common peasant found with valuable jewelry could face severe punishment, even death, for simply possessing any – it was assumed they most certainly must have stolen it. 

Fast forward to modern times - what lady does not love jewelry? I have met a few in my lifetime and I mean only a few. 

My taste is not on the flamboyant side. The Florida east coast style is totally different than here on Marco Island or even nearby Naples, for that matter. My staff is often complimented on our unusual selection of jewelry; it is a mixture of American and European manufacturers with some pieces made in our island shop by my son and myself. I also purchase pieces from other small craftsman shops.

I carry and suggest wearable, comfortable and practical jewelry, pieces that can be worn every day and still receive compliments, and my selection of jewelry brings joy to many different parties - the giver, wearer and beholders (And that also includes me!)

Diamonds to me are a thing of beauty; I have often said I’m not impressed with the size of a diamond but its inner beauty 

What makes a diamond truly beautiful is a complex process between Mother Nature and mankind. Nature is in no hurry to make a diamond. It takes a million years or more for her to create one…not exactly the one to depend on in a time sensitive situation. Even then so many elements to the recipe that require high heat plus intense pressure are needed in all in the right amounts to make a perfect gem. Not all are perfect; many never ever see a piece of jewelry because of such low quality and total lack of beauty.

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. It’s a perfect term for what each individual thinks which piece of jewelry is beautiful.

Richard Alan is a designer/goldsmith and owner of the Harbor Goldsmith, Marco and Naples go-to jeweler since 1994. He welcomes your questions and comments about All That Glitters. www.harborgoldsmith.com