Jewelry Appraisal Reviews New Line of Space Age Jewelry at Carnegie Museum

Remember at the end of Star Wars: A New Hope when Princess Leia presented awards to Han, Luke, and Chewie for their assistance in destroying the first Death Star? Most people tend to focus on the awards ceremony itself—with the proud, jovial music, it is a noteworthy ending to the first of an iconic series—but our jewelry appraisal remembers the simple yet sophisticated jewelry worn by Princess Leia in this closing scene. It consisted of a silver-toned necklace with square-shaped pieces strung across the neck and a matching cuff which stand out against her otherwise neutral wardrobe. Although classic science fiction films tend to focus on functional, utilitarian pieces worn by their characters, this is one example of the science fiction aesthetic.

So, have you ever watched a science fiction film like any from the Star Wars trilogy and wish you could don some of their iconic, out of this world jewelry? Well, that want is not too far from reality. This Arizona jewelry appraisal service recently learned of a new exhibit being premiered at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Museum which will feature jewelry inspired by classic science fiction films as well as elements found in outer space. We think this is a nice change from some of the cosplay jewelry typically found in the sci-fi realm, which tends to take a more literal perspective. This is especially true with the popular steampunk items that attempt to imagine what Victorian style would have looked like had science progressed further during the time period, such as outlandish goggles or wearable time pieces.

Titled “Out of This World! Jewelry in the Space Age,” this exhibit runs from now through early January and is included with general museum admission. The exhibit will focus on artist interpretations of items such as Princess Leia’s iconic necklace featured in the 1977 film mentioned above, as well as inspired by other movies, novels, and space events. An example of the various design pieces on display that our jewelry appraisal found of interest is a Cartier Paris commemoration of the Apollo 11 moon landing. It was made in 18-carat gold and is one of three existing items. Another French jewelry design comes from Van Cleef & Arpels and is known as the Tampa Necklace. Taking inspiration from From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne, the necklace displays a trail of diamonds behind a small rocket to illustrate a major plot point.

This Arizona jewelry appraisal finds the genre’s addition to the jewelry world an interesting and innovative inclusion, something that could clearly hold an interest to collectors and investors. While none of the jewelry items put on display in the exhibit will be up for sale, they still have the potential to be sold at a later time or even inspire other jewelers to create such items. This latter option is something our jewelry appraisal will look forward to seeing in the coming years as it shows the evolution jewelry continues to have in our culture.