Antique & Vintage Earrings
Earrings With a Century Behind Them
Earrings are the most personal of antique jewels — worn against the face, chosen for movement and light. The pairs on this page cover the forms the eras did best: long Victorian drops that swing as the wearer turns her head, cluster and girandole arrangements built around colored stones, and the clean gold hoops and diamond pairs of the twentieth century. Victorian earrings were made for pierced ears with long wires and, often, a length modern earrings rarely attempt; Edwardian work trades weight for delicacy, millegrain edges and platinum-fine detail; Art Deco pairs bring geometry and contrast.
Royal Regency tests and researches every pair before listing. Metals and stones are verified, marks are read where they exist, and fittings are described honestly — original wires, later screws or clips, and any conversion are stated in the listing rather than left for the buyer to discover. A pair that has stayed together for a hundred years, still matched in color and condition, is a small survival story in itself.
A Note on Fittings
Most genuine Victorian and Edwardian earrings were made for pierced ears. If a listing describes screw or clip fittings, they are either original to a later pair or a period conversion — both were common in the early twentieth century, when some wearers preferred not to pierce. Your own jeweler can convert most fittings if you prefer posts; we leave that choice, and the earrings' originality, to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are antique earrings comfortable to wear? Period earrings vary — long Victorian drops are lighter than they look, because the work is hollow or thin-gauged by modern standards, while some cluster pairs carry real weight. If weight matters to you, write to us about a specific pair and we will tell you honestly how it wears.
Were antique earrings always for pierced ears? Nearly always in the Victorian and Edwardian years. Screw-back and clip fittings became common in the 1900s–1930s, so a later pair may be original with screws. Our listings state the fitting type and whether it appears original or converted.
How do I know a pair is really a pair? Matched color, matched cuts, matching wear and matching marks. Couples get separated over a century, and honest dealers check. Every pair here is examined as a pair before listing, and anything unmatched would be described as such.
Can the fittings be changed to posts? In most cases a jeweler can convert wires, screws or clips to posts. We sell pairs in their found state so the decision — and the earrings' originality — stays yours.
What stones suit earrings best? Garnet, diamond and pearl are the period classics: garnet for its warm color in candlelight, diamond for brilliance in movement, pearl for the soft luster Edwardian taste prized. Softer stones appear too, and our listings describe condition stone by stone.
From Our Archive
Earrings that have passed through Royal Regency and now sit in private collections — the record behind the pairs listed above.
A pair of Victorian garnet drop earrings in 14-karat gold, from the 1860s. Long drops of the early Victorian years, the garnets glowing against solid gold — the finest pair of garnet earrings we have handled. Sold through our Whatnot showroom.
A pair of Art Deco "Pools of Light" earrings in sterling silver. Three graduated rock crystal orbs per ear, undrilled and held in silver bands — the sought-after Deco form, documented in our sales records. Sold through our Whatnot showroom.
A pair of 18-karat gold hoop earrings by Milor, Italy. Solid three-dimensional hoops in 750 gold from the Italian maker whose work we list whenever it crosses the bench. Sold through our Whatnot showroom.
