Back to the era of the Hawaiian
monarchy, the origin of Hawaiian
heirloom jewelry can be found.
The Hawaiian kingdom had long
enjoyed a favorable relationship
with England.
In February 1862, Prince
Albert, husband to England’s
Queen Victoria, was dead.
During the queen’s time
of grief, only mourning clothes
and black-accented jewelry
were acceptable apparel at
the royal court. Meanwhile,
jewelry accented with black
jet or enamel and carved with
floral, vine or scroll designs
became the fashion trend in
England. These pieces came
in the forms of rings, broaches,
pendants and bracelets.
Reacting to Prince Albert’s
death, a 23-year-old Hawaiian
princess named Liliu Loloku
Walania Kamakaeha (Hawaii’s
last Queen Liliuokalani) ordered
two gold that precisely followed
the style and detail of the
black-enameled English mourning
jewelry.
In 1887, Hawaii’s Queen
Kapiolani and Princess Liliu
were invited to Queen Victoria’s
Jubilee. At the Jubilee, Queen
Victoria bestowed them precious
gold bracelets with each name
of theirs imprinted in Old
English Lettering filled with
black enamel (here's an example
of hawaiian jewelry). They
adored the gift so that they
had similar bracelets made
for Hawaiian Royal members
upon their return to Hawaii.
Hawaiian Royal had adopted
this sophisticated and hand-carved
technique and developed it
into its unique design inspired
by Hawaiian nature. This Hawaiian
royal heritage has been succeeded
and lived on as Today’s
Hawaiian Jewelry.
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