Why is Faberge unique? What is champleve enamel? Why should emeralds be regarded with suspicion? Which jewels contain miniature coffins? Starting to Collect Antique Jewellery tracks the progress of jewellery designs from early times to the twentieth-century, assisting the professional jeweller, the collector and the student in making informed and balanced judgments upon scores of crucial topics - from the setting of old gems, to fakes and forgeries. This book is superbly illustrated with hundreds of colour photographs provided by auction houses, dealers, leading shops and private collectors. From Castellani to Cartier, from hair combs to cameos, Starting to Collect Antique Jewellery represents a key companion which is relevant, readable and comprehensively informative.