1

The Pure Opportunity

The Far Eastern Obsession

The Western Renaissance

The Unique Image

The Designer’s Medium

The Richest Heritage

Main Index

The Pure Opportunity

Platinum’s origins in jewellery go back nearly 2,000 years to the

pre-Columbian Indian civilisations of South America.

Its modern tradition begins with the European court jewellers of

the 18th century and extends to the exquisite creations of the

great jewellers of the Edwardian era and the Art Deco period.

Today, it is used by jewellers around the world with skill and

inspiration to create dazzling innovations in jewellery technique

and design.

Contrast the shimmering brilliance of Japanese gem-set rings

and pure platinum necklaces with the subdued satin finish and

technical virtuosity of German design. Or compare the ice and fire

of Italian platinum and gold combinations with the novel mixtures

of materials and forms from the elite jewellers of New York.

Platinum jewellery, its markets, its image, its design and its

heritage - all can be your opportunities.

Index

2

The Far Eastern Obsession

The world’s principal platinum jewellery market is Japan.

Platinum, introduced after the Meiji restoration in 1868, rapidly

achieved a special position in the minds of the Japanese people

that remains unchanged to this day.

Platinum combines high quality, prestige and value with an

appeal, by virtue of its white colour, to traditional Japanese

modesty and sobriety.

The consumption of platinum metal by the Japanese jewellery

industry in 1980 was 14 tonnes; by 1999 it had almost tripled to

41 tonnes, and around 8 million pieces of jewellery containing

platinum were sold.

The rapid growth of the Japanese market has stimulated the

manufacture of platinum jewellery in other regions. Production in

Hong Kong, Thailand and India has increased for export to Japan

and the USA.

Lately, China has discovered the charms of platinum jewellery.

Demand for the white metal has surged in the 1990s, as young

urban Chinese women seek to acquire the truly modern styling

that platinum jewellery represents.

Index

3

World Platinum Jewellery Fabrication1990 - 2000

Japan

‘000 ozs

ROW Europe USA China

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

01990

19921994

19961998

2000

The Western Renaissance

Platinum jewellery in Europe existed in the 1920s and 1930s,

but virtually disappeared during World War II. Its post-war

resurgence began in Germany, where jewellers diversified out of

gold into platinum, introducing novelty to their product range and

profit from the higher added value of platinum jewellery. They

gave platinum a distinct identity characterised by stark modern

design and the prevalent use of a satin finish. Platinum jewellery

became established in the high-value sector of the German

market, acquiring an image of exclusive confidentiality, and today

encompasses the mass markets through more classical

platinum designs.

Italian jewellers began experimenting with platinum in the 1980s,

combining it with gold, creating warmth and softness around the

cool strength of platinum, imbuing each piece with characteristic

Italian sensuality. Expert at manipulating form, they have

achieved the illusion of volume without the corresponding weight

and expense and famed for their expertise in the design and

production of light pendant chains they now export all over

the world.

During the 1920s the United States was the largest consumer of

platinum for jewellery - the role of Japan today. Now, platinum

jewellery in the USA is undergoing a renaissance, begun by the

individual style and limited edition creations of New York

designers, and carried on by the appeal of platinum bridal

jewellery - the expression of a relationship which is pure, valued

and unique.

Index

4

Platinum Jewellery Demand 2000

China37% Japan

41%

ROW2%

USA12%

Europe8%

The Unique Image

Throughout the world, platinum jewellery is made in a purity of at

least 85 per cent platinum, and in Europe and the U.S.A., 95 per

cent is the norm. Contrast this with gold jewellery, sometimes as

diluted as 8 carat. The buyer of platinum jewellery will be aware

of another special aspect of the metal - its relative scarcity. Only

a little more than 150 tonnes of platinum were mined in 1999,

compared to 2,576 tonnes of gold and 27,626 tonnes of silver.

Because 50 per cent of the world’s supplies are consumed in a

variety of essential industries, the quantity available for jewellery

is not infinite. Many jewellers reflect this characteristic of rarity by

limiting the production of their platinum jewellery to just a few

examples of each design.

Technically, no other precious metal compares to platinum for

strength and resistance to tarnish. This is why silver was

discarded as the material for setting diamonds. Once the

technique of melting platinum in the workshop was established,

jewellers could use platinum’s structural strength and

untarnishable whiteness to show off diamonds at their best.

Today, the highest class diamond jewellery will usually be

mounted in delicate platinum settings to secure and preserve the

natural brilliance of the stones.

Platinum is not just for women. It is also ideal for a man’s

jewellery collection. Its cool, subdued look complements the male

psyche; discreet, elegant, imposing and strong.

Platinum need not be expensive to be special. As a young

person’s jewellery in a lighter style it still carries the mystique of

the rare and the valuable, the hard won metal which takes

10 tonnes of rock to be broken to produce a single ounce.

Index

5

The Designer’s Medium

The techniques for working gold jewellery cannot simply be

applied to platinum, which makes different demands on the

jeweller’s skills. Platinum requires a scrupulously clean working

environment, melting and casting equipment capable of operating

at high temperature (pure platinum melts at 1769°C) and careful

attention to polishing technique. Of course, there are superb

advantages in platinum too - it can be repeatedly heated and

cooled without the hardening and tarnishing effects produced in

gold alloys.

The techniques for working in platinum are already well

developed and, once mastered, allow free rein to the jewellery

designer’s imagination. Even the most slender sections of

platinum permanently retain their shape, giving the designer a

freedom not possible with other materials.

Perhaps the best modern example of platinum’s virtuosity is the

tension ring. A valuable diamond is secured by the pressure of

the ring shank alone. Only platinum, among the precious metals,

has the tensile characteristics that can achieve this effect.

Polished platinum provides a counterpoint to gold, the sharp

colour contrast of the two metals enhancing the beauty of each.

In platinum alone, the metal’s icy whiteness conveys its singular

message of brilliant elegance, and when understatement is

required, platinum’s true values can be concealed beneath a

subtle grey matt finish.

Index

6

The Richest Heritage

Platinum jewellery has a proud heritage. Cartier, Tiffany, Fabergé,

Van Cleef and Arpels, Buccellati, all have used and continue to

use and appreciate the fine qualities of platinum for men’s and

women’s jewellery of the highest character. The famed jewels of

the Duchess of Windsor were set in platinum. Platinum graces

the Crown Jewels of the Kings of England, the Tsars of Russia

and the Emperors of Japan.

Platinum, the metal which extends the boundaries of jewellery

design and amplifies the brilliance of precious stones, can add

value, excitement and prestige to your jewellery collection too.

Index

7

Duchess of Windsor wears a tiara inplatinum made by Cartier.