Palette: A palette is a board
which artists apply paint to when they are preparing to make a
painting. In regards to any medium outside of painting, the
palette simply refers to the group of colors chosen by a
particular factory or decorator.
Palladium: A charcoal gray
form of platinum found in Russia, South
Africa and North America. Palladium has many of the same
properties as platinum such as its
resistance to corrosion and versatile applications in jewelry
designs. Pieces made with Palladium bear the hallmarks
of Pd950 or Pd500.
Palmette: A stylized palm leaf
which is a common motif in Greek and Persian art.
Panther link: A flat chain
in which each link resembles
three bricks stacked on top of each other with the center brick
offset one half-step to the side. The offset brick is then
connected to the space left by the offset brick of the next link
in the chain by means of a
pin. These bricks are commonly rectangular, but may also be
shaped like the diamond in a deck of cards.
Parure: Term for a set of jewelry
popular through the 19th century which consisted of several
pieces of matching jewelry.
In times, a complete
parure consisted of two matching bracelets,
necklace, earrings
and a brooch. See also demi-parure.
Paste: In the context of jewelry,
"paste" is a glass-based substance used to simulate gemstones.
It has become a slang term for all fake gemstones.
Pastille burners: A form of
incense burners popular from 1820-1850 in the form of cottages,
churches, or summer houses, with detachable lids.
Patina: The change in an object's
surface resulting from natural aging due to wear and oxidation.
Antique jewelry
is expected to have this patina and the value of the piece may
decrease if it is cleaned off.
Pave': (pah-VAY) A kind of setting
in which small gemstones
are set very close together resembling the paving done with
bricks.
Pavilion: The pointed section
of a cut gemstone
just below the girdle ending
in the culet.
Pavilion Height: The distance from the girdle
to the culet of a cut
gemstone.
Pear Cut: A fancy
shape of gem cutting
which somewhat resembles a teardrop; rounded on one end and
pointed on the other. See Fancy
Cut.
Pearl: An organic gem
grown within oysters and other mollusks
when they produce nacre as a
reaction to an irritant. A good sized pearl can take between
five to eight years to form, which is usually the entire life of
the oyster or mollusk.
Pearls are most valuable when they are perfectly round. Fine
natural pearls are much more expensive and rare to find than cultured
pearls. Never dip jewelry
with pearls into a jewelry
cleaning solution unless it specifically says that it is safe
for pearls. If the solution is not intended for pearls, it will
dull the luster on the pearl
and cause them to look cloudy. Pearl is the birthstone
for June. See also awabi pearl,
cultured pearl, oriental
pearl, freshwater pearl,
blister pearl, mabe',
nacre, and baroque.
Pearlescent: A term used to
describe a surface with lustrous cloudy rainbow-like colors like
one might see in an oil slick or mother
of pearl. Synonymous with Iridescent.
Penannular brooch: "Penannular"
means "almost circular". A penannular brooch
is a circle of metal with a
small gap in it. A pin attached to a tube can slide along the
circle of metal. The pin is
threaded through material and the gap in the circle. The circle
is then twisted so that the pin rests on the circle, thus
securing the material. It is most commonly used as a cloak clasp.
Pendant: An ornament or charm
that hangs from a cord or chain
worn around the neck.
Pennyweight: see dwt.
Peridot: Another name for
chrysolite and olivine. Peridot is the birthstone
for August.
Perfumed Beads: Beads
that release a scent when warmed by the body.
Periclase: See Magnesia.
Petit Point: A stone shaped to a
fine point which is usually somewhat larger than needle point
and is characterized by being round, oval, or having one rounded
end.
Pewter: An alloy
of 90% tin mixed with lead,
antimony, and a bit of silver
or copper.
Phenacite: A glassy, colorless
mineral occuring in rhombohedral
crystals composed of beryllium silicate.
From the Greek for imposter, deceiver, phenacite is a silicate
of glucina, and receives
its name from its deceptive similarity to quartz.
It is sometimes used as a gemstone.
Phosphate: A salt
composed of the most highly oxidized
acid of phosphorus, and forms an
important and extensive series of compounds.
Phosphorus: A highly
reactive, poisonous, nonmetallic
element occurring naturally
in phosphates, especially apatite,
which is found as a white, or yellowish, translucent
waxy substance, having a characteristic disagreeable smell and a
faint glow.
Picture Jasper: An opaque
tan colored variety of jasper
with medium and dark brown patches that make the
"pictures."
Pierced: A hole punched
completely through an object.
Pierced earrings: Earrings
that are attached to an ear by means of a wire or post that is
inserted through a hole pierced in the ear.
Pierced-Work: See Open
Work.
Pietra Dura: An inlaying
technique usually associated with workshops in Florence, Italy,
used to describe sculptural or decorative use of hard
stones to decorate furniture, cameos,
vases, and panels with various stones such as malachite,
lapis lazuli, and jasper.
Pigeon's-Blood: A deep
red-violet shade of ruby which
is the most desirable color of ruby.
Pins: Jewelry
attached to clothing by means of a small metal
rod with a sharp point.
Pinchbeck: A type of imitation
gold composed of an alloy
of copper and zinc
invented by Christopher Pinchbeck in the 18th century.
Piqué: (pee-kay). A decorative
style popular in the 18th and 19th centuries of inlaying
tortoise shell with a pattern of gold
and silver. Tortoise shell
melts like plastic when exposed to heat. Piqué is produced by
pressing a heated rod of precious metal
into the shell, melting it slightly. When the shell cools it
hardens around the precious metal.
Plain: An object with one plain
uniform color and no decorations of any kind.
Plagioclase: Another name
for Oligoclase.
Platinum: One of the three
"precious metals" along with gold
and silver, platinum is the
rarest of them all. It is harder than the other precious
metals and has a higher melting point, making it difficult
to alloy and work with.
Platinum is silvery-white in color, almost never causes allergic
reactions and is resistant to tarnish.
The standard of platinum in the US and most western countries is
95% pure and is usually marked PLAT. That name comes from "platina",
a Spanish word meaning "little silver", which is what
the Spaniards called it when they first encountered it in South
America in the 18th century. See also Iridium,
Palladium, and Rhodium.
Plique-A-Jour: A form of enameling
popular in Art Nouveau jewelry
similar to cloisonné,
but where the transparent
enamels are held in place by
wires on the edges rather than on a metal
plate.
Plum Gold: See Karat.
Poesy: A ring
or other piece of jewelry
with a short love poem inscribed on it. Popular in the medieval
period.
Point: The smallest unit of weight
used for gemstones, equal
to 1/100th of a carat. Another term for a 1/4 carat diamond
is a 25 point diamond.
Poison Ring: A small hinged box
secured to a ring which is
made to resemble a normal setting, but can be opened to reveal a
small space which could conceivably be used to hold poison. See
also Prayer ring.
Poison Box Pendant: A small box worn
as a pendant that could conceivably be
used to hold poison. See also Prayer pendant.
Polish: The process of rubbing an
object to make it smooth and shiny and reduce the appearance of
flaws.
Polychrome: Literally meaning
"many colored", in the context of jewelry it simply
refers to a decoration that uses three or more colors.
Polypropylene: A hard,
tough polymer of propylene used as a thermoplastic molding
material.
Polyurethane: A polymer
containing urethane used as plastic, adhesive, paint, rubber, or
to form a tough, resistant coating.
Poppy Jasper: An opaque
variety of jasper with
colors such as brick red, white, brown, and blacks.
Porosity: Areas of the mold
that absorbed some of the casting material leaving the cast
object with a rough, granular surface.
Post: The pin that sticks out the
back of a stud earring.
The post goes through the pierced ear and is secured in place
with a catch that slides onto
it behind the earlobe.
Posy: An alternate spelling of poesy
Pot Metal: Any alloys
which do not have gold, silver,
or platinum as a component. Also called
White Metal
Potash: Any compound containing potassium.
Potassium: A common soft,
silver-white, alkali metal element
that is only found in nature as a compound with other elements.
It is obtained by electrolysis of its common hydroxide, oxidizes
rapidly in air and reacts violently with water, and is used in
glass making, soap making, in fertilizers, and in many drugs and
chemicals.
Prase: A translucent
leek-green variety of chalcedony
varying in color from light green or light grayish-green.
Prayer Ring: A small hinged box
secured to a ring which is
made to resemble a normal setting, but can be opened to reveal a
small space which could be used to hold a small piece of paper
with a prayer written on it. See also Poison
ring.
Prayer Box Pendant: A small box worn as a pendant
that could be used to hold a small piece of paper with a prayer
written on it. See also Poison pendant.
Precious Gemstone: Gemstones
that are highly valuable for their hardness and rarity. There
are only four precious gemstones:
diamonds, sapphires,
emeralds and rubies.
Precious metal: Metals valued for their color,
malleability, and rarity. There are only three precious metals: gold,
silver and platinum.
Precious stone: See Precious
Gemstone.
Princess cut: A relatively new fancy
cut for gemstones
based on the multi-faceted square
cut. It is square when viewed from the top
Prong setting: A gemstone
held in place by small finger-like wires attached to the bezel
and bend over the edges of the stone.
Prystal: Trade name for a glass
substitute invented in Italy made of plastic.
Punches: Pointed tools used for
stamping a design on a surface.
Pyralin: See French
Ivory.
Pyrite: A common mineral
composed of iron disulphide
with a pale brass-yellow color used as an iron
ore and in the production of sulfur
dioxide for sulfuric acid.
Also called Fool's gold and Iron pyrite.
Pyrolusite: The most common ore
of manganese composed of manganese
dioxide. It is a soft,
iron-black to dark-steel-gray colored mineral
and is used extensively in creating brown and green tints of
glass.
Pyrope Garnet: A poppy or
blood-red colored garnet
composed of alumina magnesia.
It is used as a gem.
Sometimes called an "American Ruby", "Australian
Ruby", "Arizona Ruby", or "Bohemian
garnet". See also Rhodolite.
Pyroxene: Any of a group of crystalline
minerals common in igneous
rocks containing two metallic
oxides . Pyroxene is a silicate
of lime and magnesia
with sometimes alumina and iron.
Though it was named after the Greek words for "fire"
and "stranger" because it was supposed to be a rare
occurence in igneous rocks,
it is actually quite common. It varies in color from white to
dark green and black.
