Miriam haskell necklace
It consisted of a distinctive hook on one end and an extender on the other consisting of several pearls or beads. The other main clasp used was a very simple spring ring clasp but distinctive as it did not have the protruding prong (the ''thumb'' part).Īfter the war, during the signed period, Haskell introduced the hook and tail design to allow the necklace length to be varied. Early unsigned necklaces tend to have box clasps which were quite elaborate and decorated with pearls, beads or rhinestones, and either round, or oblong if the piece had multiple strands. Thus if you have a flat back piece it dates from c1980 to the present.Ĭlasps are an important element in identifying Haskell pieces. This tag was used until the late 1970''s, but it was then changed to a similar tag but without the stamping coming through to the reverse (''flat back'').
This tag was usually attached to the back of the piece but was also used as a hangtag. The stamping came through to the other side, but indented and, of course, reversed. Then in the early 1950''s the tag was changed to an flat oval shape with ''MIRIAM HASKELL'' stamped on to it. This probably began in 1947/48 but was not put on all pieces. The first signature was a semicircular plaque (horseshoe) that was attached to the back of the piece. It was only in the 1940''s that a permanent signature was attached to protect the Haskell name from cheaper competition that imitated her style. At this time the company did not sign any of its pieces with a permanent tag, but only a paper one (black and gold). Miriam Haskell set up her business in 1926 and soon afterwards took on Frank Hess as her chief designer.