The History Of Modern Charms

Most people would be hard pressed to think of a more versatile piece of jewelry than charms. These delicate yet often very elaborate miniature pieces can be used on charm bracelets, added to hoop earrings or even attached to necklaces as pendants. Silver charms and gold charms alike are popular either as unique additions to a bracelet or chain or as part of a collection of charms.

Mixing and matching different types of charms with each other on bracelets is one of the fun aspects of charm bracelets. There are no hard and fast rules about what you can or cannot do with your charm collections and silver and gold charms can easily be used on the same bracelet or kept completely separate. Adding both types of metal charms to your bracelet means it can easily be matched with anything you may decide to wear.

The earliest recorded use of charms and charm bracelets dates way back to the early times of the Egyptian Pharaohs. In these times gold charms were used to bring good luck or ward off bad spirits and were considered essential rather than just fashionable. Metals as well as other materials were used in designing these types of gold or silver charms and the bracelets would stay with the wearer even into death.

In early Christian times a charm in the shape of a fish was used by secret groups to safely and quietly identify themselves as Christians. The Jewish religion also used amulets that contained very tiny scrolls as ways to keep their faith close to them. It is very likely that these early traditions led to both charms as well as the lockets that are still highly popular in modern times.

While not typically used to keep away evil and attract good spirits in modern times, charms are still seen as good luck charms. These good luck pieces often date back to medieval times and the Renaissance period of history.

The 20th century saw an upswing in the demand for charms for several reasons. The first was the fact that Queen Victoria herself wore a charm bracelet that really started the trend. These charms were more historic and national in style featuring landmarks, coat of arms and flags.

Soldiers returning home from World Wars l and ll often brought back small charms from different countries and areas of the world they visited. Local jewelers catered to this growing market by making easy to recognize symbols from different areas. Wives, girlfriends and mothers in the United States often had charms from many different countries on their charm bracelets.

Charms are now more than just silver charms and gold charms. They can be plastic, cut glass, precious or semi-precious stones, amulets, or even beads. They continue to be very popular with young and old alike, making them a jewelry fashion staple.