Napier Ajoure Fleur De Lis Clip Earrings

These bold but intricate earrings were made at some point before 1955, as their clasps are marked "Napier Pat. Pend."  This is one way a person is able to date a piece of costume jewelry, along with the help of a great online reference guide like http://www.illusionjewels.com/. There are also hundreds books available on pricing and dating jewerly and antiques, but I like to use the internet.

The earrings are done in goldtone ajoure.  "Ajoure" jewelry is often confused with "filigree" jewelry but they are not the same at all.  The filigree process involves metal threads be twisted and soldered together, while the ajoure process involves punching, cutting, and drilling holes into a once solid sheet of metal. 

Feel free to contact me if you are interested in purchasing this piece.  Questions, comments, and additional information are always appreciated.  My online shop on http://www.rubylane.com/ is coming soon.

Thank you to the following website(s) for the historical content of this blog post:

Illusion Jewels. Retrieved 4/28/2011 from http://www.illusionjewels.com/costumejewelrymarksn.html

Vintage Jewelry Lane. Retrieved 4/28/2011 from http://vintagejewelrylane.com/information/filigreejewelry.htm