19th Century Aluminum Bracelet

19th Century Aluminum Bracelet 

France or England, circa 1860. 

Ancanthus leaves form a quatrefoil in aluminum on a gilded metal background. Maker's signature on clasp. 

Hidden push clasp. The bracelet measures 6.75 inches in length and .75 inches wide. The medallion has a drop length of 1.25 inches. 

In the 19th century, aluminum was rarer than gold. Before the discovery of modern refining methods, extracting it was difficult and costly, making it a material of wonder and innovation. Jewelry from this brief era reflects that fascination. 

Aluminum jewelry appeared in Paris around the 1850s and was exhibited at the Exposition Universelle of 1855, where Napoleon III famously commissioned aluminum tableware for state banquets. The material’s rarity and association with modern invention made it fashionable among the avant-garde, particularly in France and Britain. By the end of the century, industrial methods had rendered aluminum common, and the brief moment when it was treated as a precious metal had passed. Its rarity today lies not only in its beauty, but in the fleeting moment when a humble metal was considered precious.