Is it true that gold jewelry from the USSR is superior in quality to modern

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Some are sure that real gold is exactly the Soviet one, others consider the design to be outdated and never pretended to be chic, others associate pleasant memories of certain events or people with rings and earrings of those years. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to give any objective assessment of the jewelry of the Soviet era, moreover, the jewelry industry in the Union was not a business focused on the needs of the buyer, but a nationwide industry, while private jewelers were prohibited.

History and trends of the Soviet jewelry industry

However, the brands that took their history before the revolution were not completely destroyed, they managed to survive the October upheavals, and are still working, of course, changing the name, the format of work, in accordance with the requirements of the time, but maintaining a recognizable style.

The Volga and Ural companies were abandoned by their owners and subsequently transformed into factories. Some of them work to this day, however, again becoming private. Some of them managed to maintain their identity, but at the same time keep up with modern jewelry trends. Rarely do jewelry factories all over the world produce hairpins or headbands made of precious metals, as Russian factories do.

Despite the fact that the jewelry industry became centralized, there were factories in almost every major city throughout the country. Each of them had a GOST sign, which was used to stamp each product. Despite the fact that most factories had their own specialization, they also produced a standard set of jewelry. Well, very much in the spirit of the times - the same clothes, typical apartments, stamped earrings and standard thoughts. Nevertheless, after the Second World War, attention to folk crafts was reflected in the art of jewelry. Kubachi silver, blackened with gilding, Kholmogory silver with gilding, enamel and black on silver - originate from this period. The fact that these trends are still taking place suggests that the potential of the jewelers of that moment clearly allowed them to create classics for centuries, and not to stamp a given standard.

Quality of stones: naturalness of stones or synthetic variability?

If we talk about the authenticity and naturalness of stones used in the Soviet jewelry industry, then we often come across not just contradictory, but mutually exclusive versions. Moreover, it often turns out that both versions are true. Quality often depended on funding, and if there was none, then they saved on everything, most often gilding and stones suffered. Popular sapphires, rubies and emeralds in Soviet jewelry were grown artificially. And no matter how old the jewelry is, these minerals have been synthesized for a very long time.

But with ornamental stones, things were much better, in the USSR they were actively mined, such gems were in abundance and agates, rhodonites, jade, jasper were even used to make jewelry.

In the 19th century, a deposit of emeralds was discovered in the Urals, but they were mined not for the jewelry industry, but in order to extract beryllium, which is used in the military industry. Therefore, natural emerald is practically not found in Soviet jewelry.

Synthetic stones, especially corundum, are an important part of the Soviet jewelry industry. This is controversial, for some it is a high achievement of scientists, for others a fake, not worthy of attention. Jewelry with a red stone was especially popular among Soviet women. Then it was sold as rubies or sapphires, but what was the surprise of those who attributed jewelry to modern jewelers. Most often, glass pieces, at best synthetic stones, were sold under the guise of a precious stone.

There is also a logical explanation for this, given that, due to the shortage, quite large sums accumulated among the population, deliberately inflated prices were set for luxury goods. Therefore, they often overpaid for jewelry, and now such jewelry goes at the price of metal.

When, in the 80s, scientists from the FIAN Institute managed to grow an artificial diamond, a real breakthrough occurred in the jewelry industry. Cubic zirconias have been produced since then using the same technology, but at that time a ring with cubic zirconias could cost as much as a ruby. The Soviet Union got used to not paying attention to the term "synthetic", and therefore a diamond, even artificial (and what is not artificial in this market), could not be cheap. When cubic zirconias were first invented, they made a splash in the world market and were very expensive. A kilogram sold for three thousand dollars, is now almost 60 times cheaper.

Scientists who invented an artificial diamond received a little more than 100 rubles as a bonus, given that the invention collapsed the diamond market, and a cash flow began to flow into the country, the state could be more grateful to the inventors.

Individuality and style or stapling and mass character?

What are jewelry for? To highlight beauty and personality. Realizing this, the majority of Soviet citizens who know a lot about jewelry and have the financial ability were looking for jewelry on commissions. In them one could find antique items that were sold for very serious sums. No wonder, here one could find surviving noble family jewels, trophies brought after the war, confiscation of economic prisoners.

The famous Soviet flowers were produced by many factories, and they are still produced now, they were decorated with stones of different shades and this was where their individuality ended. Large rings with a bright ruby-glass also became a symbol of the era, older women especially loved them, even though they were uncomfortable to wear and clung to everything and could hardly fit into the overall image.

Despite the fact that in the USSR it was not customary to wear large or expensive jewelry in everyday life, as well as to boast of their financial position, jewelry played a special role. It was customary to give them for one or another important event. As a rule, girls received the first decoration at the graduation, and then at the wedding, the birth of children. They were given by their parents, donating "grandmother's gold". Often, such gold was not in status (and is still kept) somewhere on a sideboard in a tea set that is waiting in the wings.

The sample standard appeared only after the revolution and then after 10 years. Then a stamp with a worker and a hammer appeared, as well as an alphabetic code. The mark was either triangular or rectangular. Later, in 1956, they were replaced by a star.

The sample is the amount of precious metal in the metal, if before the revolution the sample was tied to the pound, then after they switched to the metric, so 84 sample became 875, 88 - 916.

The surge in popularity of jewelry workshops

Despite the fact that only state-owned factories for the production of jewelry worked, and private owners were blocked from any opportunity for development, they, of course, worked. For the craftsmen, a special enterprise was created, also state-owned, but it was extremely difficult to get there to work. Most of the craftsmen also worked clandestinely at home, since there were simply a huge number of people who wanted to alter or make a new product. People craved individuality.

It was possible to get a job in such a workshop only by great pull, or by paying. In addition, regular checks were carried out to identify illegal activities. In the workshop, the amount of metal and stones on the invoices had to converge, and if suddenly silver spoons or someone's gold teeth were suddenly found on the table, this could lead to arrest.

However, during the checks, there was an unspoken rule that what is on the floor has nothing to do with the master. So, with an unexpected check, the jeweler could easily sweep the stones and precious metal off the table. But when there was a tendency to an increase in the production of jewelry, they began to check the masters less often, since there were practically no real specialists and high hopes were pinned on them. They were lured to factories with promises of large salaries.

But a real master could not work on a conveyor belt, lack of artistic self-realization, stamping, bad taste, frequently encountered fake stones - all this sickened real masters of their craft, who retained their talent exclusively for private practice.

Jewelery, as well as many other things, in the country were treated with a sense and arrangement by the Council, demanding quality and honesty from manufacturers. However, in the system of priorities, the jewelry industry was definitely not in the forefront, and therefore attention was paid to it on a leftover basis. Is it really beautiful when you need to conquer space? However, the fact remains - Soviet jewelry has enough fans even now, when the market is bursting with the number of offers, but still there are no craftsmen who will process the glass so that the hostess will wear and be proud - a ruby! But on the most expensive dresses in the world, there are not only rubies, but also the rarest red diamonds..