Lecture Programme 2021
26 January
Jonathan Boyd
online lecture only - to watch a recording of this lecture (members only), click here.
I Can’t String a Sentence Together: Jewellery and Words/Words and Jewellery
Jonathan Boyd is a multi-award-winning artist and jeweller working in a variety of materials specialising in conceptual and narrative-led jewellery and objects. He is also the Head of Programme in Jewellery and Metal at the Royal College of Art. For over 10 years Jonathan has explored the two languages of words and jewellery through objects where meaning and form are inseparable. Reflecting these difficult, unusual and hyper-modern times, Jonathan will be presenting via zoom using image, video and virtual montage to best exploit the possibilities presented by a digital format.
23 February
Jack Ogden, presidential address
online lecture only - to watch a recording of this lecture (members only), click here.
The Black Prince’s Ruby: Investigating the Legend
The 170 carat red spinel set in the Imperial State Crown in Britain’s Crown Jewels is known as the ‘Black Prince’s Ruby’ and is one of Britain’s best-known gems. It has been popularly associated with Edward the Prince of Wales — the ‘Black Prince’— who lived in the 1300s. An oft-repeated legend links the gem back to its presentation to the Prince in Spain in 1367 and tells of how Henry V wore it on his crown at the famous Battle of Agincourt in 1415. But how much, if any, of the legend can be verified? And when was this legend first recorded? This talk looks back through renaissance and medieval sources to try to separate fact from fiction. It will question whether we can identify the gem among the confusingly large number of large spinels that reached royal treasuries in the later medieval times, and evaluate its supposed continuous history down through its various owners, including Pedro the Cruel in Spain and Elizabeth I in England.
23 March EGM and AGM followed by
Rui Galopim de Carvalho
Please note that the recording of this lecture will only be made available to Members online when the collection is on public view. The timing of this is unknown at present.
A Preview of the Gemstones at the Portuguese Royal Treasury
After decades of being kept closed in a secret vault, the royal treasures of Portugal, including the crown jewels, personal jewels of the monarchs and other precious items, were properly cleaned by an expert conservation team and all the thousands of gemstones tested. In this talk, you’ll be offered a private gem-related sneak peak of what to expect in the forthcoming permanent exhibition at the new Museu do Tesouro Real - Palácio Nacional da Ajuda, in Lisbon, Portugal.
27 April
Carol Michaelson
Chinese jade jewellery and ornaments from the Neolithic to the Present
lecture postponed from 24 March 2020.
Chinese jade jewellery: A chronological survey. Jade has been prized in China since Neolithic times. In the West diamonds, gold and silver have usually been the most valued materials but, for the Chinese, jade has long been at the top of the hierarchy of the materials they most treasured. Jade working began in China probably over 5,000 years ago in the north-eastern part of what is China today. Over the succeeding millennia both nephrite and jadeite jade have been fashioned into jewellery and amulets, both worn in lifetime and buried with the owner for use and protection in the afterlife. This lecture will look at how this tactile but very tough material has been used over time.
2021 |
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2016 |
2015 |
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2012 |
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2005-2008 |
2000-2004 |
1995-1999 |
1990-1994 |
1985-1989 |
1980-1984 |
1977-1980