All that glitters...

...may be gold. Or silver. Platinum, diamond, pearl, even? Certainly all and more were glittering, glistening, and shining their little hearts out at the re-opening of the V&A's jewellery gallery, which I went to Friday night with jewelophile friend Margot.

The galleries are impressively done, albeit a bit overwhelming, and frankly less bling than I was expecting. The Crown Jewels these are not -- instead the visitor is presented with an historic march from some of the earliest known adornments (including those darn Etruscans) through to the most modern of pieces, looking more like works of art than something you could (or would) actually wear.

The panel after panel crowded with samples perhaps got just a little samey to all but the true aficianado (how many signet rings can you look at? Really, the ones from the 1600s didn't look that different from ones from the 1800s, at least to my philistine eye.) I think I would've preferred examples of 'the best' of this, or 'most distinctive' of that -- which they did have in some cases, highlighted in the centre of the galleries. And I did learn a few things -- such as what a "chatelaine" is. I knew the word to mean mistress of a large house / estate / castle. Turns out it also was a chain women wore in the days before pockets & purses, on which would hang tools for the house -- keys, scissors, a watch, etc. A Swiss Army belt. Ish.

I was also impressed by the gemstone colour wheel at the end of the exhibit -- ranging from diamonds to pearls, the wheel swirled together jewels in every imaginable colour. I can never decide if saphires or emeralds are my favourite... sigh -- I guess I'll have to take both.

There were also a few multimedia aspects -- the most amazing of which was a touch screen computer where you could design your own ring. My efforts weren't too fantastic, as I ran out of time, but I was hugely impressed by the instant 3D nature of the design -- you could rotate, resize, recolour, cut, etc, your jewels and ring onscreen and see your creation from every angle. Pretty cool.

Next on the exhibition schedule -- Psycho Buildings. Or should I see Skin & Bones -- about fashion and architecture? Aaah -- too many choices.