A Short History of Men's Jewelry

Story · Men's jewelry

For most of history jewelry was never just decoration. It showed rank, protected the wearer, sealed documents or told others which group a man belonged to. Here is how that story led to the simple stone-and-silver pieces men wear today.

Before metal: shells, teeth and beads

The oldest known jewelry is made of shell beads, found at sites tens of thousands of years old. Early people also strung animal teeth, bones and carved stone. These were personal marks: a sign of a successful hunter, a family tie or a protective charm.

Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia

In Egypt, men and women wore gold, carnelian and blue lapis lazuli. Amulets in the shape of scarabs and eyes were believed to protect the wearer in life and after it. In Mesopotamia, small carved cylinder seals were worn on cords and rolled onto clay to sign agreements, so jewelry doubled as a personal signature.

Greece and Rome: the signet ring

Greek and Roman men wore signet rings engraved with a personal image to seal letters and documents. Rank could be shown by the metal and the size of a ring. This is where the engraved ring and the family crest begin.

The Middle Ages and the Renaissance

In medieval Europe jewelry was bound up with status and religion. Crosses, rings of office and clasps were common, and in some places laws limited who could wear which metals and stones. By the Renaissance, courtiers wore pearls, chains and earrings openly as a display of wealth and taste.

Silver, protection and craft

Silver has long been worked into amulets, crosses and arm rings across Europe and the Mediterranean. In Greece, the Byzantine tradition left a lasting style of crosses and strung beads that still shapes how cross jewelry looks today.

Byzantine Cross · 8mmShopLapis & Malachite Cross · 6mmShopTurquoise Large Cross · 6mmShopLava Stone Cross · 6mmShop

The 20th century: from watches to beads

In the 1900s the wristwatch became the one accepted wrist accessory for men, and other jewelry was seen as optional. Then each decade brought it back: chains and rings from rock and hip-hop, leather cords and surf beads, and later the rise of natural stone bracelets.

Today: stones, silver and personal meaning

Modern men's jewelry is quieter than in the Renaissance but carries the same ideas: material, craft and meaning. Beads of onyx, tiger's eye and lava stone in sterling silver are popular because they are durable, easy to style and personal.

Knights Onyx & Sodalite · 8mmShopMyKing Lava & Onyx · 10mmShopKnights Tiger's Eye · 8mmShopAncient Onyx & AmethystShop

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