Do you know...by L'ECOLE, School of Jewelry Arts!

Shell, with traces of perforation and polishing that prove they have been worked by man to be worn.

The earliest known and identified ornaments date back to about 150,000 BCE, long before the first painted cave decorations. These jewels were found recently, between 2014 and 2018, near Essaouira in Morocco, in the Bizmoune cave. They are thirty-two small shells, at first sight insignificant, very modest by their dimensions and their simplicity. On closer inspection, however, they show precious clues proving that they have been worked by man to be worn: traces of perforation and polishing are visible as well as remains of red pigment.

Did these shells form a necklace, several bracelets, a belt or were they simply sewn onto clothing? It is difficult to answer this question, but archaeologists agree that they are the oldest known adornments in history and the first form of artistic expression of humanity.

Register to our Art History of Jewelry classes to unveil more stories on the history of jewelry arts!

Gouache.

Gouache, sometimes referred to as opaque watercolor. The word gouache comes from the Italian word guazzo, which means mud. In comparison to regular water painting, gouache watercolor is opaque and therefore adds a richer look to the pieces that it’s used in.

A "gouaché" is the first step in the creation of a High Jewelry piece: a painted design that will act as a guide for all the craftsmen involved – mock-up makers, jewelers, gemologists and stone setters. French high jewelry maisons like Van Cleef & Arpels use gouache to design every single one of their jewelry creations.

Experiment with gouache in our "savoir-faire" courses!