Precious Black Jewels: The Bijou Material Culture of Black Victorians & Edwardians

For far too long, Black Victorians have been excluded from authentic representation within the decorative arts—especially in the realm of antique jewelry. Despite enduring inaccurate caricatures and stereotypes, they appeared for portraits in elegant adornments that reflected their individuality, taste, and sentimental symbolism.

Precious Black Jewels: The Bijou Material Culture of Black Victorians & Edwardians celebrates their presence while using their portraits as living evidence of antique jewelry styles. Drawing from Tanzy A. Ward’s personal archives and expertise as an antique jewelry historian, this volume invites readers to explore vivid, rarely seen images and gain insight into 19th- and early 20th-century jewelry identification. Both visual and educational, it honors accurate Black Americana bijou culture and reclaims its rightful place in the decorative arts narrative.

Tanzy Ward is an antique dealer, historic preservationist, and author whose work unites decorative arts and history education to preserve ancestral material culture. Her research centers on integrating the ancestral Black diaspora into antique jewelry representation and reimagining the broader story of Black Victorian and Edwardian life.

Her previous works include Hidden Legacies: African Presence in European Antiques (2020) and Unsung Portraits: Anonymous Images of Black Victorians and Early 20th Century Ancestors (2022). She is a graduate of Saint Leo University and the Asheford Institute of Antiques. Her collaborations and featured work include the APEX Museum, Cherokee County History Center, Hapeville Depot Museum, Yale University Divinity School, National Jeweler Magazine, Worthwhile Magazine, and the Afro-American Historical & Genealogical Society.