BOOK AN APPOINTMENT
Knowledge
From the unlikely crowning of Henry VII in 1485 to the death of Elizabeth I in 1603, no chapter in English history has captivated the public imagination quite like the Tudors. The 118 year long reign of the Tudor Dynasty saw unprecedented upheaval. This was an era marked by political turbulence, religious revolution and soap-opera-level scandal that has cemented this period and the monarchs who reigned it utterly iconic.
Design Period
The Tudor dynasty was defined as much by its silences as its loud proclamations: Anne Boleyn’s whispered ambitions, Elizabeth I’s carefully constructed persona of the Virgin Queen and the deafening absence of a male heir that loomed over Henry VIII’s succession crises. Henry VIII’s decisive break with the Catholic Church, Edward VI’s uncompromising Protestantism, Mary I’s fervent re-Catholicisation and Elizabeth I’s return to Protestantism had left the nation fractured and confused.
£43,000
£21,000
And yet, out of this chaos emerged a cultural flourishing. The reign of Elizabeth I ushered in a period later lauded as a ‘Golden Age’. Under her leadership, England asserted itself on the world stage, challenging the hegemony of the Spanish Crown and sowing the seeds of what would eventually become the British Empire.At the heart of the Tudor Dynasty lay an acute awareness that power could be strengthened by image. In an age when appearances could be as politically potent as armies, both Henry VIII and Elizabeth I spared no expense in commissioning portraits depicting themselves draped in jewels laden with symbolism to cultivate images of unflinching power.
Pendants
Pendants were hugely popular in Tudor England and contemporary portraits reveal a vast array of designs. Thanks to the revolutionary rise of printing technology in the 16th century, jewellery designs circulated widely across Europe, reproduced and reimagined by goldsmiths from London to Venice.
Men and boys typically wore pendants on thick chains; women draped them from girdles, fastened them to gowns, or suspended them delicately from necklaces. Because they were intended to hang freely, pendants were often elaborately enamelled on the reverse, allowing them to be enjoyed from every angle.
Early in the period, devotional pendants reigned supreme. All six of Henry VIII’s wives owned cross pendants, and the sacred monogram IHS (a Greek abbreviation for Jesus) was ubiquitous across Europe. But as the 16th century progressed, pendants grew ever more sculptural, flamboyant, and imaginative – miniature masterpieces crafted from gold, enamel and precious gemstones.
Tudor pendants captured the spirit of an age in flux. The expanding world beyond Europe found whimsical expression in jewels shaped like galleons, sea monsters, mermaids, and mermen. ‘Baroque’ pearls – irregular, misshapen and yet utterly beguiling – were ingeniously transformed into hippocamps, swans and salamanders by building up gold around the natural contours of the pearl.
Animal pendants were a particular favourite of Elizabeth I, who received a menagerie of jewelled beasts from admiring courtiers: white hinds, greyhounds, scorpions, turtles, nightingales and dolphins. The fashion for animal pendants also found religious expression in the creation of enamelled gold lambs and pelicans in piety.
Other pendants were overtly politically loaded. For example, in 1577 Robert Dudley, a favourite courtier of Elizabeth I’s, gifted his queen a jewel that depicted her enthroned while Mary Queen of Scots is shown enchained at her feet while France and Spain are submerged by waves.
Initial Jewellery
Initial jewellery enjoyed popularity throughout the Tudor period and its appeal has proved remarkably enduring. Written in Gothic script and set with table-cut diamonds, rubies or pearls, these intimate jewels emphasised the individuality of their wearer. Henry VIII greatly favoured initial jewels and, throughout the course of his many marriages, commissioned pendants that entwined his initials with those of his successive queens.
Yet no figure embodied the fashion more iconically than Anne Boleyn. Her legendary necklace, a gold ‘B’ with three suspended drop-shape pearls, remains one of the most recognisable jewels in history – a symbol as much of personal style as of dynastic drama. However, the extremely personal nature of such jewels has prevented many of them from surviving – leaving behind only traces in portraiture, inventories and myth.
Chains
Another widespread fashion was for that of extremely heavy gold chains. This was a trend that originated in Italy but quickly spread to England where it became all the rage for English noblemen. Contemporary chronicles note that Henry VIII owned a gold chain weighing over 98 ounces. Gold chains were often given as gifts from ambassadors at court or to any gentleman who rendered service to the King.
Interestingly, the wearing of heavy-set gold chains was exclusively reserved for men in Tudor England, however, contemporary Dutch portraiture often depicts women wearing the same chains.
Gold chains from this era rarely survive. Over the centuries they were melted down to be used for new jewellery to keep up with rapidly changing fashions or sold for quick cash. The majority of gold Tudor age chains that we know of today have been excavated from shipwrecks
Hat Pins and Headdresses
During this era, the head was considered the noblest part of the body. Men regularly wore hats from simple caps or bonnets to the more flamboyant broad-brimmed fedoras. This gave rise to the fashion for wearing badges on hats. They were usually pinned off-centre on caps or on the raised brim of fedoras. Classical themes were a favourite, with many examples depicting mythological tales or Roman deities.
Rings
Of all forms of jewellery, the ring has been the most continuous throughout history. In Tudor England, rings were not only the most popular jewel, but also the most abundant. Their portability, intimacy, and versatility made them indispensable. Rings could signify love or mourning, religious devotion or political allegiance. They were exchanged as tokens of fidelity and affection, granted as rewards for loyalty or service and worn as declarations of wealth, identity, or intent. According to contemporary accounts, Henry VIII is believed to have owned over 700 rings – a staggering collection that speaks to their value both as ornament and instrument of power.
Among the most coveted Tudor rings were intaglio rings, set with gemstones finely carved with miniature portraits or classical motifs. Rings bearing Henry VIII’s own likeness were particularly fashionable, worn as a badge of royal favour or patriotic pride. Some rings from this period were even set with original ancient Roman intaglios. The rarity and value of these gems, both ancient and contemporary, is emphasised by their settings, which were often engraved and enamelled to a very high standard.
Equally important were signet rings. They were engraved with coats of arms or personal emblems either on the metal bezel of the ring or on a hardstone or foiled crystal intaglio. Signet rings were commonly used to authenticate documents with wax seals – jewels that quite literally bore the wearer’s authority and identity. Pride in family connections and lineage could also be expressed by the choice of heraldic engravings to be done on bloodstone.
Another popular type of ring was the gimmel ring, which was composed of two or more interlocking bands that fit together to form a single ring. The name comes from the Latin gemellus, meaning "twin," and these rings were often used to signify union – most commonly in betrothal or marriage. During the 16th century, the style of these rings was elaborated, with the shoulders emphasised by sculptural details and the petal-like sides of the two quatrefoil bezels chased and richly enamelled.
By Elizabeth I’s reign, gloves had become very popular and she herself was particularly fond of them. However, gloves posed the problem of concealing the many finger rings worn beneath. Anxious to display wealth and status at every given moment, a clever solution came to the rescue: fashion designers ingeniously created ‘slashed’ gloves with fabric cut open at the finger joints to reveal the rings beneath.
Materials and Gemstones
The voyages and conquest of the New World by the Spanish brought huge amounts of gold, silver and precious gemstones to the European market.
Most gemstones, however, arrived from the East: diamonds from India (cut in Antwerp, Europe’s diamond-cutting capital) and rubies from Burma. Emeralds came from Colombia’s Muzo mines which were worked by the Spanish from the mid 1500s.
Pearls
The 16th century witnessed the dawn of the ‘Pearl Age’. The discovery of the New World brought with it copious amounts of saltwater pearls. Henry VIII famously adorned his robes, hats and even shoes with large numbers of pearls. Following eagerly in his example, men of his court sported gold pearl earrings. However, it was during the reign of Elizabeth I that pearls reached their zenith, becoming the most prized of all gemstones. She wore magnificent pearl earrings and pendants as well as seven or more ropes of large pearls, the longest of which extended to her knees.
Conclusion
Tudor jewellery was far more than decorative – it was a sophisticated visual language, worn with intent in a world where power depended as much on perception as it did on politics. Each pendant, chain, ring or pearl spoke volumes, quietly reinforcing dynastic ambition, religious allegiance, personal identity or royal favour. These were jewels with agendas.
The transformation of ornament into instrument was no accident: the Tudors understood better than most that image was influence, and influence, power. Henry VIII’s ostentatious chains, Anne Boleyn’s iconic initial pendant, and Elizabeth I’s zoological court of gem-encrusted creatures were all part of carefully orchestrated performances in which jewellery played a starring role.
As new materials and gemstones poured into Europe from East and West, Tudor jewellers responded with exuberant creativity, fashioning gold and gems into fantastical forms that echoed both the expanding worldview and the inner anxieties of the age. Jewellery mirrored the contradictions of the time: deeply pious yet flagrantly ostentatious, rigidly codified yet endlessly inventive.
Though few of these jewels survive today, their allure remains – immortalised in portraits, described in letters and inventories and kept alive by myth. Here at Berganza, we celebrate this rich legacy by curating pieces that embody the craftsmanship, symbolism and spirit of the era.
Medieval
Read more
Post Medieval
Renaissance
Stuart
