According to the Wikipedia, “Jewellery (Jewelry in American English) is any piece of fine material used to adorn the human body. Jewellery has probably been around since the dawn of man; indeed, recently found 100,000 year-old Nassarius shells that were made into beads are thought to be the oldest known jewellery.” For most of us, however, when we hear about rings of gold & silver, diamonds, emeralds, sapphires, pearls, precious stones, engagements, weddings, anniversaries, holidays, etc., our imaginations sweep us away into worlds of starry dreams & adventures. The dazzling beauty of jewels, gemstones & precious metals thrill the emotions, evoking many passions of love, virtue, jealousy, greed & delight.

“Personal adornment and the use of bright, shiny items to attract a mate is as old as time. Jewelry is our way of showing off, spreading our ‘peacock feathers’ to make a hit with the opposite sex. Put on jewelry and you're putting on protection……What we call jewelry is really the evolution of personal adornment that has its roots in power-bestowing charms and talismans.” “The gift of jewelry speaks a thousand words: it talks about the seriousness of a relationship, the seriousness of one's intentions, and the amount of thought and passion invested in a gift selection.” Diamonds, emeralds & rubies are the hallmarks of devotion, in the language of love and affection. Gifts like necklaces, broaches, cameos, earrings, bracelets, pendants, birthstones, rings, etc., all convey significance of meaning, fondness, warmth, love and desire.

Brilliant novelists, story-tellers, and Hollywood have all fueled our obsession of love, romance and jewelry. It, of course, started with treasure hunting & fortune seeking stories like, King Midus and the Golden Touch, The Story of Aladdin, and Alibaba and the Fourty Theives. Silent film began the movie craze with, The Gold Rush, starring Charlie Chaplan, but quickly moved on to, The Thief of Bagdag, with Conrad Veidt & Rex Ingram, and, Treasure Island, with Jackie Cooper & Lionel Barrymore. Then comedies, like the original, Pink Panther, with Peter Sellers & David Niven, a funny skirmish over the burglary of renown jewels, and Michael Douglas’ adventure over the notorious heart shaped emerald in, Romancing the Stone. Next, consider the intrigue of Roger Moore in the James Bond thriller, Diamonds are Forever. Finally, can anyone ever forget Gollum’s golden “precious” in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings? Fantasy may be entertaining, but for all the hype, how are patrons influenced?

Research finds that the jewelry industry, in the US, is a very big business indeed, demanding as, “the world’s second largest gold jewellery market by volume (around 350 tonnes) and the largest by retail value (around $16 billion).” Diamonds score another “$12.5 billion in retail value.” This doesn’t take into account the numerous other gemstones, pearls or precious metals available. These statistics are quite staggering; I guess that’s literally putting one’s money where one’s mouth is. So, with so much esteem placed on these earthly mineral elements, should we ask ourselves, “Are our devotions to carats misplaced? Are our fancies base covetousness, or can we ascribe a higher meaning and purpose?”

Let’s consider another perspective, what say the great thinkers of various ages on the topic of true riches:

“Genius without education is like silver in the mine.” Benjamin Franklin

“The words that enlighten the soul are more precious than jewels.” Hazrat Inayat Khan

“The price of wisdom is above rubies.” Bible, Job xxviii. 18.

“Dive into the sea of thought, and find there pearls beyond price.” Moses Ibn Ezra, Shirat Yisrael

“No pressure, no diamonds.” Mary Case

Wardrobe adornment; expressions of love & beauty; engagement, wedding & holiday celebrations; unfortunately, a source of vanity, greed & malice; jewelry evokes the passions of men and women like no other. When all is said and done, I believe we can all agree with Elizabeth Taylor, who was quoted, “I adore wearing gems, but not because they are mine. You can't possess radiance, you can only admire it.”