posted 02-05-2001 08:45 PM            

• Warman's Jewelry, 2nd ed. (Romero)-a highly recommended book, and only it's $23.00 too. This is great for novices, but its appeal is not limited just to beginners; there are numerous bibliographical entries for further reading, as well as myriad different styles, all concisely explained, with many accurately-priced examples. Also has a helpful glossary and illustrations of marks. You can't go wrong with this book! Though out of print, the 1st edition is also a great book to have--it pictures & values different items.
  
• American Jewelry Mfrs. (Rainwater)--this is set up like her book on silver marks, and it has thousands of listings. It contains great information; absent, however, is the appendix where marks without letters/words are listed...so it is a great hassle if you want to locate the maker which corresponds with a symbol-only mark. This book is around $35-45, depending on where you buy it (it is only available in hardback form).
  
• European Designer Jewelry (Moro)--this amply illustrated volume covers jewelry from many countries in Europe; the concentration is silver & costume jewelry. It gives information on many fairly obscure makers, as well as overviews of Jensen, Fahrner, etc. It costs about 60.00, I believe, and is a good volume to have. It also has a value guide.
  
• Jewelry in America (Fales)--A beautiful book from Antique Collectors' Club. This covers American jewelry from 1600-1900, with many excellent illustrations. This is one of my favorite books. It is in the 60-75 price range.
  
• Georg Jensen: a Tradition of Splendid Silver (Drucker)--countless examples of GJ's work, along with good information make this an essential volume for any lover of
  the famous silversmithy; $60-80.
  
• Jewellery Reference & Price Guide (Poyndner)--From Antique Collectors' Club; pictures and values hundreds of pieces of jewelry; generally avoids non-precious metal pieces. It is currently available in a newly-revised form, with 1999 prices; $50-65 range.
  

Some tips--these are just a couple pointers that might be helpful if you are jewelry book shopping.

• I find that general references, such as Kovel's Antiques & Collectibles, are not the best value sources for jewelry...the usually pictureless, one-line descriptions don't really give one a good idea of what the item is, and it is hard to assign a value to something like that.
  
• Be sure the book is something you will use, or like looking at.
  
• Make certain that the values are reasonable (certain books contain some rather apocryphal values that are far above realistic levels), and that you know values mean what you can expect to pay for an item in a retail setting.
  

Does anybody have any further books to add to the list?