If you want one of the most amazing necklaces that was ever made in the 1960s, this cranberry sensation is a very rare design!
This necklace is two strands of the most fascinating beads the world has ever seen. There are 4 types of beads on this necklace but there is one type of bead in particular I want to talk about first.
See the round acrylic rose pink beads with the iridescent metallic finishes? This type of metallic luster bead goes back to the 1910-1920 era when the Japanese first perfected the art of lusterwares.
Perhaps you are familiar with Noritake lusterware ceramics from the Art Deco period. The Japanese did not invent this process; it was invented in Hungary in 1856 and the very first beads of this type were presented at the Worlds Fair in Austria in 1873. It is a very complicated process to make wares or beads with metallic luster finishes and the Japanese did so in the 1910-1930 era....and then not again until the late 1950s or early 1960s!
Japanese lusterware beads are rather hard to find. I don't know for certain the reason why they disappeared in the 1940-1950 period, but it probably had something to do with WWII.
The focal bead cab on the hidden insert clasp is also a lusterware bead, in hot metallic pink. Along the necklace strand are deep cranberry satin faux pearls and light cranberry satin baroque faux pearls.
The flat angle sliced beads are marbled cranberry Lucite with white sugar coating on the edges. These are also very rare vintage beads! The pink/orange iridized crystals are fabulous acrylic bicones that look like real crystal. The necklace is heavily decorated with big gold flower bell caps and gold metal spacer beads between each and every focal bead; so none of the beads rub against each other.
When clasped, the shortest strand on the necklace is 22 1/2" or 57 cm long. The beads range in size from 8 mm to 21 mm. The entire necklace is in spectacular like new microscopically clean condition. All of the beads are very perfect with the exception of a couple of the satin pearls that have some light facet wear. All of the gold bell caps are like new and the clasp is in perfect working order. The clasp is signed Japan.
Comes gift wrapped and shipped in a new presentation jewelry box.
