The Valuer’s Glossary: Art, Antiques & Collectibles

Understanding Valuation Terminology

Whether you’re an insurance broker, a private client, or handling an estate, understanding the terminology used in valuations is essential. This glossary explains key terms related to art, antiques, jewellery, silver, ceramics, and furniture, helping you navigate reports, appraisals, and insurance documentation with confidence.

Words	Definition

Acrylic	Plastic equivalent of oil paint.
Alabaster	A form of the mineral gypsum. It is typically white or grey and slightly translucent. Often used in decorative items and sculpture, alabaster can be polished up to create a smooth and attractive finish.
Alloy	An alloy is a mixture of metals or a mixture of a metal and another element. All gold less than 24ct is an alloy of pure gold with one or more other metals. Sterling silver is an alloy of pure silver (92.5%) and copper (7.5%). Alloying is usually done to make an improved version of the main metal: it can make it harder, less prone to tarnish (or the opposite can be a downside), a different colour, lower cost or add other desirable features.
Applied	Ornament or decoration made separately and added on to original item.
Aquatint	A variant of etching, which strives for tone rather than outline.
Armoire	A style of wardrobe. This type of wardrobe typically comes from France.
Assay	An assay is a process used to determine the purity of precious metals and to test that precious metals have been created to the specific purity they are stated to have.
Assay	The testing of precious metals to verify that they contain only the legal proportion of base metal alloy.
Assemblage	Similar to collage, but usually everyday objects assembled to convey a three-dimensional idea.
Association Copy	A book that belonged to or was annotated by the author, someone close to the author, a famous or noteworthy person, or someone especially associated with the content of the work. Should have documentary evidence of its association, such as the author's bookplate.
Autograph Letter, Signed	A handwritten letter signed by the writer.
Baguette	A faceted gemstone that has a rectangular-cut which is more complex than an emerald cut.
Ball and claw foot	A foot carved in the shape of an animal or bird’s claw holding a ball, often seen at the end of a cabriole leg.
Ball foot	A simple ball-shaped foot on furniture. This type of foot was popular in the 17th century and can often be found on tables or cabinets from the period.
Baluster	A turned or carved upright post, pillar or column. Often deployed to support the cornice in cabinet furniture, stems of tripod table bases and chair back-splats.
Baroque	European and English furniture of the late 17th and early 18th century. A bold pallette based on the rich and dramatic ecclesiastical architecture of the Italian Counter-Reformation.
Baroque Pearl	A pearl with an irregular shape is considered to be a baroque pearl. These pearls can be smooth egg or teardrop shapes, or they may be more lumpy and have complex shapes. Often baroque pearls used in jewellery are quite large. Both cultured and natural pearls can form to be baroque, but they are more common in cultured freshwater pearls.
Bezel	A type of gemstone setting which is usually used for cabochon gemstones, but a similar type of setting using a small tube can be used with facetted gemstones (this may be called a tube setting). For a bezel setting a rim of metal is pushed and/or rubbed over the edge of the gemstone to hold it in place. Usually these settings are made in silver or gold.
Birthstones	A birthstone is a specific gemstone (or sometimes more than one) which is linked to a month of birth. It's thought that people have been wearing birthstones in this way since around the 16th or 17th century, but the tradition really took off in more recent times. Various gemstone societies around the world have created more modern lists of birthstones, which don't always agree with one another, which is why you'll sometimes see your birth month has more than one stone associated with it.
Board	In the 18th Century “Book Boards” were used. These are the insides of hard-backed books, without the leather covering. By the early 19th Century, Artists’ Colourmen, such as Thomas Brown of Holborn, were producing “Millboards”, specially manufactured artist’s boards, with a smooth white surface. Such boards are still available, sometimes with a canvas-textured surface.
Bolt clasp or bolt ring	A clasp which has a circular shape. It has a tiny spring inside which is connected to a bolt which you can operate with a fingernail or fingertip to open before it springs closed.
Bombe	Bombe means “curving outward”, “bulging” or “bombe-shaped”. It is a French term used to describe pieces that feature an outward swelling curve at the front. This creates an attractive look and the style is often used for bureaus and commodes.
Bright-cut	An engraving technique used in 18^th/early 19^th century which produced a brilliant, faceted effect.
Brilliant cut	A type of cut used for diamonds. Brilliant cut stones are usually round in shape and have 58 facets.
Briolette	A cut of gemstone which is pear shaped and usually faceted for extra sparkle. Briolette beads can have holes drilled through the sides at the top or all the way through the centre from top to bottom in order to be attached to jewellery.
Brushwork	The term brushwork describes how an artist controls the paint on the canvas or paper he is working on - how he manipulates it on the surface. It is the physical act of applying paint to canvas. Brushstrokes impart texture and colour onto the surface and they are one of the main individual characteristics of an artist’s practice.
Cabochon	A cabochon is a gemstone cut which has a flat back and rounded top. Most often cabochon gemstones have a smooth, highly polished surface, but they can also be faceted on top in what is known as a rose cut design.
Caddy spoon	A spoon used for measuring out tea in the form of dried tea leaves.
Cancel	A tipped-in (i.e., pasted in) page to replace a page removed after a book has been bound.
Candelabra	A candle holder with multiple arms.
Canteen	A full canteen consists of twelve place settings. A half-canteen consists of six place settings. A double canteen consists of twenty-four place settings etc. The components of a canteen vary according to particular tastes and desires. Standard components are table and dessert forks, table (or soup) and dessert spoons, and usually teaspoons. Knives may or may not be included. Further items can include other eating implements such as fish eaters and serving items such as ladles. Canteens of silver can be supplied loose, in cutlery rolls or within a fitted box.
Canvas	Very strong woven fabric, usually made of cotton or jute.
Carats and karats: Gold	When used in relation to gold a carat is a measure of purity. The spelling is 'karat' in the USA and some other countries, but the meaning is exactly the same. The higher the number, the more pure the gold is, with the maximum being 24 (pure gold). For lower carats the gold is alloyed with other metals, making it more suitable for use in jewellery making. You'll see 'ct', 'kt' or 'K' used as shorthand or purity stamps by jewellers to refer to gold carats or karats.
Carats: Gemstones	When the term carat is used in relation to diamonds and other gemstones, it is referring to the mass (or weight) of the stones: the higher the number, the greater the weight. In this case the spelling is the same worldwide.
Card	A thinner version of board.
Case	The protective housing for the movement and dial.
Ceramic	Derived from the Greek word ‘Keramos’ meaning earthen vessel, although many items are described as ceramic now, not just vessels!
Chalice	A footed cup intended to hold a drink
Chamber stick	A holder for one or more candles, used for illumination, rituals, or decorative purposes. Chamber sticks are smaller than candlesticks and are desidnged to be carried
Charcoal	When used for drawing, it is made of willow or vine twigs heated at a high temperature, without oxygen, in an enclosed vessel to produce a solid stick.
Chased	Decoration on the surface of the metal which doesn’t cut away but coaxes the metal
Chippendale	Thomas Chippendale was a leading Rococo period / mid 18th century English Furniture designer & maker, whose pattern book, The Gentleman & Cabinet-Maker’s Director, became the very benchmark of fashionable furniture of his time, all over the world, and continues to be so.
Clarity	Clarity is a term used to refer to the degree to which a gemstone has flaws in it. The greater the clarity, generally the higher the value of the stone. However, lab grown gemstones usually have perfect clarity, but are still relatively inexpensive.
Cluster setting	A type of design where smaller gemstones are set around a larger stone as a focal point. Most often seen on rings.
Cocked	A condition resulting from storing a book on a shelf so that it leans. Gravity deforms the book binding. Cocked also refers to a book where the spine no longer remains at right angles to the covers.
Cocktail Ring	A cocktail ring usually has a relatively large focal point which sits on top of or at the centre of the band to make a statement. These rings are often large may not be suitable for everyday wear as they can get in the way of day-to-day work. But they sure are fun to wear when dressing up!
Collage	A form of visual art, where various elements, paper, photographs, objects are glued together to convey an idea or message from the French coller: To Glue
Collation	Technically, the examination and notation of the physical make-up of a book. By checking for the presence of every leaf or page originally in the volume when issued, a book may be collated as complete.
Colophon	An identifying inscription or emblem from the printer or publisher appearing at the end of a book.
Commode	A low chest-of-drawers but later became a term for bedroom cupboards to store the porcelain potty. The commode was also used in library steps and other pieces of antique furniture.
Condition	Condition refers to the state of preservation of a work of art. It includes alterations imposed by time and men on an object and on the ideas it was designed to express.
Conservation and Restoration	Cleaning, preserving, and repairing works of art is known as art conservation, and the people who do this specialized work are called conservators. Conservation covers a wide range of issues and solutions which vary considerably depending on the medium involved – oil painting, sculpture or works on paper. The aim is to bring the work of art back to as near the original state as the artist intended as possible. All work should be fully reversable and not alter the physical state of the artwork in question.
Constume Jewellery or fashion jewellery	The general consensus is that costume jewellery (or fashion jewellery) is any jewellery not made with precious metals or gemstones. These terms date to the early 20th century. Costume jewellery was traditionally created with cheaper materials including rhinestones, nickel, brass or pewter. It was particularly popular during the Great Depression and World War II when materials were scarce or expensive. Modern costume jewellery features a wider array of materials and can include simulated gemstones, glass, plastic, shell, plated base metals and much more.
Conte Crayon	A waxier form of pastel made by mixing powdered graphite or iron oxide with clay. Used for drawing in red or black.
Contemporary	Refers to the time at which an action happened to the book in relation to its printing. For instance, a contemporary binding is a book that has been re-bound shortly after being published. A contemporary inscription would have been signed and dated in the year of publication.
Copper	Polished copper and sometimes silvered copper, were used in the Netherlands, Italy and Germany, often near copper mines. Copies on copper by Flemish artists were very popular in Spain in the 17^th Century, because of their durability in transit and ability to cope with Spanish summers without changing shape.
Cradling on the back of a panel	In order to give a panel extra support, many artists produce a bracing system (cradling) for their panels. While this is not an option for solid wood panels due to their expansion and contraction over time, manufactured panels are structurally sound enough to be cradled.
Craquelure	Craquelure refers to an effect on an oil painting which is caused by the drying of the topmost layer of paint. This drying process can cause a network of shallow cracks to develop across the topmost layer or the paint – the severity of these cracks or craquelure can vary from faint to severe.
Crayon	Coloured Pencil
Crazing	When the surface of a glaze appears to have minute cracks that are not within the body of the item, causing a random network and appearing to be ‘crazy’.
Credenza	A sideboard and is usually very elaborate with a mirror back.
Crystal	The glass that covers and protects the dial and hands.
Cultured pearl	Pearls which are created under controlled conditions with the help of farmers. Cultured pearls can be created using either freshwater river molluscs or traditional saltwater pearl oysters.
Damp-stained	A light stain on the cover or on the leaves of a book caused by moisture.
Dedication Copy	The copy of the book inscribed by the author to the person to whom the book is dedicated.
Dial	Where the indices are displayed to indicate the time, these can be Roman or Arabic numerals, or simple dots, or dashes, also can be referred to as the ‘face’.
Drop-leaf	A leaf which is hinged to the side of a table, which drops at the side when not in use.
Drypoint	Is another intaglio printing technique like etching and engraving.
Duty mark	The Sovereign’s head struck on all silver ware, (some exclusions for small silver pieces)
Ebonising	This is when a dark stain is used on wood to make it look like ebony.
Edwardian	English furniture from 1901 to 1910, and characterised by often lighter neo-classical revival inlaid furniture.
Electroplate	Base metal of copper or nickel coated in silver by electrolysis
Elizabethan	English furniture from 1558 to 1603, and characterised by heavily carved and boldy ornamented pieces in oak.
Embossing	When wood and leather are stamped or hammered to make a decorative design protrude from the surface.
Embossing	The processes of creating either raised or recessed relief images and designs.
Emerald Cut	This relatively minimalist gemstone cut is square or rectangular and is generally used for large and transparent gemstones.
Enamel	A fusible vitreous coating, look at colourful items with an almost metallic sheen to them, also cloisonne and champleve.
Enamel Jewellery	Jewellery items covered in a relatively thick decorative coating that is applied to a metal. Usually the enamel is coloured. Traditional enamel is made up of glass powder which is fused to the metal using high temperatures, usually in a kiln. Today cold enamel may be used, which is an epoxy based colouring solution which dries hard and sticks to the metal.
End Papers	The sheets of paper pasted onto the inner covers, joining the book block to the covers. One side of the sheet is pasted to the inside cover, the other is left free.
Engraving	Using a steel plate, which being much harder than copper can produce several thousand prints without the image blurring.
Engraving	In relation to jewellery, this is the process of cutting an often highly detailed design or text in the surface of metal using specialised tools known as gravers. It may also be done using power tools with tiny burs, but this has much poorer results. Proper engraving requires a very high degree of skill and is often done by a Master Engraver who specialises in this type of work.
Ephemera	Printed or written items intended to have a short lifetime that are now collectable. Examples include posters, postcards, tickets, maps and pamphlets.
Errata	Usually encountered in the term "errata slip," a small sheet of paper laid into a book by a publisher after discovering errors prior to publication.
Etching	Original works of art produced by an artist or print maker scratching an image using a steel burin (a needle-like instrument) into a copper plate. Later the surface of the copper is covered in wax and acid is used to eat out the line. Next, having removed the wax, the copper plate is covered with ink. The ink is then wiped from the surface but stays in the grooves. A sheet of wet paper is then placed on the surface and the paper and plate are put into a press. The pressure forces the wet paper into the grooves and it then absorbs the ink and produces an image.
Etching	This is the process of making designs on metal by using an acid to corrode away the part of the design you want removed. This results in a less crisp finish than engraving, but it has a beauty all of its own.
Facets	Facets are the flat surfaces which are created on a cut stone or glass. They can also form in nature.
Facetted Gemstone	A facetted gemstone has cut surfaces to help it catch the light and sparkle. The most common cut is usually a classic diamond shape. The top of the gemstone has multiple facets and the back ends at a point in the centre. Is usually set in a claw or prong setting. Cabochon cut gemstones may also be faceted on top and flat on the back, which is usually called a rose cut.
Filigree	A highly ornamental type of jewellery making where precious metal wire is twisted to form delicate tracework patterns.
Fine Silver	Fine silver is basically pure silver. The technical definition of pure silver is that it has a silver content of at least 99.9%. Although it tarnishes far less than sterling silver, it has limited uses in jewellery making due to being very soft and pliable. Most jewellery is made in the alloy sterling silver.
First Edition	Generally used to mean the first appearance of a work in book or pamphlet form, in its first printing.
First Thus	Means not a first edition, but something that is new. It may be revised, have a new introduction by the author or someone else, be the first publication in paperback form, or first by another publisher.
First Trade Edition	The edition produced for general commercial sale, as distinguished from a limited edition.
Flatware	Cutlery, tableware
Fluting	A decoration formed by making parallel, concave grooves usually seen on column shafts and run in a vertical direction.
Flyleaf	A blank leaf, sometimes more than one, following the front free endpaper or at the end of a book where there is not sufficient text to fill out the last few pages.
Fore-Edge Painting	The leading edges of the book are bent back to expose a greater area and a watercolour painting is applied to this surface.
Foxing	Brown spotting of the paper caused by a chemical reaction, generally found in 19th century books, particularly in steel engravings of the period.
Freshwater pearls	Freshwater pearls are cultivated in molluscs which live in freshwater rather than oysters which live in saltwater. These pearls can be created in a wide array of shapes and are less expensive than saltwater pearls.
Fretwork	An ornamental design which is intricately cut into metal (or traditionally wood) with a fretsaw or jeweller's piercing saw so that parts of the design are removed.
Frieze	The edge below the top of a piece of furniture can be plain or sometimes carved with fretwork.
Frontispiece	An illustration at the beginning of a book, usually facing the title page.
Gallery	An ornamental metal or wood railing around the edge of a piece of furniture.
Gathering	A group of sheets folded together for sewing or gluing into the binding.
Gauge	The thickness of the metal
Gemstone	The definition of a gemstone is: a mineral crystal which is cut and polished in order to be used in jewellery or other decorative items. However, some rocks (eg. lapis lazuli, opal, and jade) and organic materials (eg. pearl and amber) are also used in a similar way and are often also considered to be gemstones. Precious gemstones are diamonds, rubies, emeralds and sapphires, while semi-precious gemstones are all other gemstones. Lab grown or simulated gemstones are manmade and generally not as costly as natural stones, although they may be more perfect. Pastes, glass beads or Swarovski type pieces are not gemstones.
Georgian	English furniture from the reigns of George I, George II and George III until just before the start of the Regency period; 1714 to roughly 1805. Though this period begins with walnut and ends with satinwood and other exotic woods, the primary timber for Georgian furniture is mahogany. This was the period that saw Palladianism take over from Baroque, following on Rococo, Orientalism, Gothic and Neo Classisism.
Gesso	The substrate material applied to carved furniture as the base for painting or predominantly, gilding. In use from the Middle Ages, it is a mixture of gypsum, sizing, glue and oils.
Gesso	Panels were often prepared with Gesso, a water-based plaster, that fills in the wrinkles in the grain of the wood.
Giclee	A digital printing process in which an ink-jet printer is used to produce a high-quality art print.
Gilding	This describes the thin layer of gold that is applied to wood or metal, and then burnished to create a lustrous finish. Traditionally applied as gold leaf, with water onto gesso, with oil directly onto wood, and murcury onto metal.
Gilding	A number of decorative techniques which are used for applying fine gold leaf, foil or powder to a surface. In terms of jewellery making we occasionally use an ancient technique to bond gold foil to other metals, primarily sterling silver. Gilded finishes should be treated with care as they are delicate.
Gilt Edges	The application of gilt to various edges on a book. For example: all edges gilt, or top edge gilt.
Glaze	A thin layer of coating, that almost appears like a glass covering, usually applied prior to firing.
Gouache	An opaque version of watercolour.
Gutter	The inner margin of the leaves of a bound book.
Hairline crack	A very slight crack within the body of an item, usually very fine and by definition only the width of a hair!
Hallmarks	Small stamped symbols on the back or underside of silver items can tell you the purity of the silver, the manufacturer of the piece, and sometimes even the date it was made.
Hallmarks or purity stamps	A mark or stamp usually indicating a standard of purity and sometimes the provenance of a piece which is used in marking gold and silver items, including jewellery. Hallmarks indicating purity are not required by law in Australia, but may be required for items made in other countries. In Europe particularly there are strong laws around the use of hallmarks and only certain stamps can be used in different countries.
Hands	The long pieces upon the dial that rotate and indicate the time on the dial.
Hollow-ware	Vessels such as jugs, tankards etc as opposed to flatware
Iconography	Iconography is a particular range or system of types of image used by artists to convey particular meanings. For example in Christian religious painting there is an iconography of images such as the lamb which represents Christ, or the dove which represents the Holy Spirit.
Impasto	An Italian word meaning ‘mixture’ - impasto describes a painting technique where the artist applies paint thickly onto the surface of the canvas or panel, so that brushstrokes or palette knife marks are highly visible.
Inclusion	These are visible flaws which can be seen inside a gemstone. These can include foreign objects, fractures in the stone, abnormal crystals, etc.. Generally speaking the more included a gemstone is, the lower its value. However, inclusions can be quite beautiful and make each gemstone featuring them unique. Some gemstones, like moss agate, are valued because of their beautiful inclusions.
Incunabula	Books, pamphlets, calendars, and indulgences printed, not handwritten, before 1501 in Europe.
Inlay	A decorative design or pattern that is created by imbedding pieces of one material into another. Furniture is often inlaid with contrasting woods, ivory and mother of pearl.
Issue points	Noted changes between various copies of the same book. Since collectors generally prefer the earliest issue, they often use small changes (such as a spelling correction) to determine priority and any such difference is described as an issue point.
Jacobean	English furniture from 1603 to 1649, covering the reigns of James I and Charles I. Characterised by more carved oak and marks the beginning of the English interpretation of the Baroque style.
Jappanning	A furniture finish from the 17th and 18th centuries, whereby paints and varnishes are applied to a gesso base in order to simulate the appearance of lacquer.
Jardinière	A plant or flower container.
Kneehole desk	A desk with pedestals down either side and has a central opening for the knees of a person seated at it.
Lab grown gemstones	Lab grown gemstones are made in laboratories rather than being found in nature and mined. Usually they are created in the same way as the natural variation, but in a way that is vastly quicker, less expensive and much less damaging. The outcome is a gemstone that is largely identical to the mined version, but lab created gemstones are usually perfect in terms of quality and clarity. The benefits of lab grown and simulated gems are that they are much more affordable and often more sustainable and ethical than high value mined gems.
Lacquer	The oriental varnish obtained from the sap of the lacquer tree. It gives a high-gloss finish to furniture.
Large Paper Copy	A type of special edition typically printed in smaller quantities and sold at a higher price than the standard print run. In these runs a larger paper (often of superior quality) was used.
Limited Edition	Any book whose publication is deliberately restricted to a comparatively small number of copies, usually numbered and often signed by the author and/or illustrator.
Linen	A weaker woven fabric used in the 15^th Century akin to canvas.
Lining a Canvas	The term ‘Lining’ refers to a conservation technique which involves attaching a new fabric support to the back of a canvas painting. The process can help to safely support the painting. This is used to strengthen, flatten or consolidate oil paintings on canvas when the original canvas has become unstable due to age or to damage. The process is sometimes referred to as ‘Relining’. Most often a new support will be added directly to the back of an existing canvas. In cases of extreme decay, however, the original canvas may be completely removed and replaced. In cases where the damage is small in relation to the overall canvas support – such as a little hole or tear – a small patch can be used instead to support the specific location as apposed to lining the entire painting. This is called Patch Lining or Strip Lining if the edges of the canvas are the only areas being strengthened.
Linocut	Same as a woodcut except using lino. The technique was invented by AW Seaby around the time of the First World War.
Lithograph	Is a similar process but using stone (Lithos in Greek) instead of a copper plate. The result looks like an original drawing.
Loaded	Hollow items of silver/plated ware that have been filled for stability, ie candlesticks
Majolica	A soft colourful opaque glaze, often seen in Italian, French and Spanish pieces.
Marginalia	Notes written in the margins of a page around the text. Frequently made by students and others when studying a text.
Marquise	A gemstone cut which has an oval shape with two pointed ends on its longest axis.
Mezzotint	Similar process, but the copper plate is covered in tiny holes made by a steel rocker, consisting of numerous little spikes. At this early stage, the piece of paper when inked, would look virtually black, whence the French name “La Manière Noire” or “La Manière Anglaise”. Then the plate is smoothed with a burin, a burnisher with a round end and a scraper with a triangular end. Subtle variations in tone can be achieved . The technique was introduced to England by Prince Rupert of The Rhine, who is better known as one Charles I’s cavalry commanders in the Civil War.
Mixed Media	A combination of materials/mediums.
MOHS scale	This scale of 1 to 10 which is used in relation to jewellery to measure the hardness of gemstones. Diamonds have a hardness of 10, making them one of the hardest materials.
Monotype	As the name implies, is a one-off print using the same technique as above, but where the matrix (plate or stone) is destroyed.
Mother of pearl	An iridescent coating which is formed on the inside of oyster shells. It is used to create beads and pendants. Also known as nacre.
Movement	The mechanism that powers the clock and ‘moves’ the hands around the dial.
Neoclassical	The manner in which the designs, forms, motifs and ideals of Ancient Greek and Roman art and architecture were employed in the designs of late 18th and early 19th century English, American and European furniture.
Occasional table	A term for small tables such as side tables, coffee tables, lamp tables etc.
Octavo (8vo)	A book of about five inches wide and eight inches tall to about six by nine inches. Octavo is the most common size for current hardcover books. To make octavo books, each sheet of paper is folded to make eight leaves (16 pages).
Oil	A compound of pigments, such as vegetable material and minerals, bound with linseed oil or occasionally nut oils. Traditionally, these pigments were ground in a pestle and mortar, but were available in tube form from the 19th Century.
Original Boards	The original binding that the book was published in, as opposed to contemporary binding or rebound.
Ormolu	A French phrase meaning ground gold. It refers to brass mounts on furniture.
Ottoman	A low, upholstered seat without backs or arms. Sometimes used as a foot-rest and can have storage space inside.
Oxidised or blackened silver	Silver or sterling silver which has had a chemical applied to it in order to blacken it as a decorative element. It is a form of patination (see below). Most often you'll see a recessed pattern blackened, while the raised areas are shiny silver. The chemicals most often used for this process are liver of sulphur or a hydrochloric acid solution. The chemicals are entirely rinsed from the metal after they have created the blackened effect. The blackening is a thin surface finish and may wear away over time, particularly in exposed areas.
Page	One side of a leaf. The front side of a leaf is called the recto or obverse and the back side of the leaf is called the verso or the reverse.
Paint Surface	This refers to the physical surface of a work of art, and can refer to the physical condition or the work itself, or refer to the artistic characterisitcs of the painting i.e. the brushstrokes or impasto.
Panel	In Northern Europe the most common panels were made of Baltic Oak, although Rembrandt twice used Mahogany. In Italy the panels were made of softer woods such as Lime, Walnut and Poplar and these are more prone to woodworm.
Panel	The front or back of a dust jacket, as opposed to the spine or flaps.
Pastel	Sticks of chalk bound with pigment. They come in varying degrees of hardness.
Patina	Natural process of oxidation over time resulting in darkening/dulling of the metal
Pear cut	A gemstone which is cut into a teardrop shape.
Photography	Can be anything from reportage to aesthetic ideas using the medium of a photograph
Plating	A surface covering in which a metal is deposited on a conductive surface: in jewellery this is most often another metal, for instance gold plating applied to brass or silver plating to nickel. Plating can be done in a variety of thicknesses and this will determine how hard wearing it is. Flash plating is very thin, while vermeil plating is usually quite thick (and it is applied to sterling silver rather than a base metal) - see below for more info about vermeil. All plating will wear through eventually, so care should be taken with such designs.
Platinum	A naturally occurring metal which is white in colour and very heavy. Like gold it is generally non-corroding. It is difficult to work and is more expensive than gold, making its use in jewellery relatively rare.
Presentation Copy	A copy of a book given by the author to someone of his/her acquaintance, usually with an inscription of some sort testifying to this.
Princess cut	A faceted gemstone which has a square-cut. It may also be known as a quadrillion or squarillion.
Private Press	A small press, often operated by one person, usually devoted to the production of small quantities of finely printed books.
Privately Printed	This term refers to a book or pamphlet whose printing was paid for by an individual, or a group, and which is meant for private circulation, not public sale.
Provenance	The history of ownership or possession of a given book.
Provincial silver	Silver made and hallmarked by assay offices other than London, ie York, in Scotland other than Glasgow and Edinburgh ie Wick, Perth etc
Queen Anne	The period of English furniture from 1702 to 1714, dominated from the top by the British stylistic interpretation of the Baroque, with walnut being the principal timber.
Regency	The period of English furniture that went beyond the bounds of the strict Regency rule of 1811-1820, spanning from the late 18th century to the 1830’s. It is characterised by an eclectic and original combination of the neo-classical, the exotic, the Oriental and the Egyptian.
Relief	A decoration that is raised from the surface of a piece of furniture. It can be carved, stamped or moulded so as to protrude from the surface to form a pattern.
Rocco	The style and design ideal that dominated the middle part of the 18th century. A form that originated in France and is literally translated as ‘rock work’, it was the perfect antithesis to the Baroque before and the neo-classicism that followed, with its asymmetric, naturalistic and picturesque motifs and curvilinear forms, designed to encourage informality, playfulness and comfort.
Rose cut gemstone	A variation of a cabochon gemstone cut which has a flat bottom and a dome-shaped top. Unlike a regular smooth cabochon, the top of a rose cut gem has a number of facets cut into it (anywhere from 3 to 24).
Rose gold	Rose gold jewellery is created with an alloy of gold and copper, with the copper content providing the altered colour to yellow gold. Rose gold is also known as pink gold and red gold, but the different names usually relate to the amount of copper used: the higher the copper content, the stronger the red colouration.
Salt Glaze	A method of applying a glaze to earthenware items by (literally) throwing a hand full of salt into the kiln whilst firing, the resultant vapour reacts with the item and thus creates the glaze.
Sculpture	Stone or wood carved into naturalistic or abstract form or metal, glass, plastic etc. moulded for the same purpose.
Semi-precious gemstones	All natural gemstones that are not one of the 4 in the 'precious gemstones' category (see above) are considered to be semi-precious stones. This includes gemstones that are generally more valuable than the 4 precious stones and those gemstones that are in the same families as the precious stones (eg. emerald is a type of beryl, as is aquamarine, but only emeralds are considered precious). These designations are not scientific at all, but are still commonly used. We're not big fans of them!
Sepia	A dye made from cuttlefish ink, which it exudes as a defensive screen. Sepia is the Latin for Cuttlefish.
Sheet	The piece of paper on which the printer prints. The sheet is folded one or more times to form the leaves of the book.
Sheffield plate	Silver fused/hammered by hand to base metal, often copper, as opposed the chemical process of electro-plating
Sideboard	A large piece of dining-room furniture with a flat top and sometimes a back for displaying china and glass. The body is a storage unit, composed of drawers, sometimes flanked on each side by cabinets with doors.
Silkscreen	Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen to fill the open mesh apertures with ink, and a reverse stroke then causes the screen to touch the substrate momentarily along a line of contact. This causes the ink to wet the substrate and be pulled out of the mesh apertures as the screen springs back after the blade has passed. One colour is printed at a time, so several screens can be used to produce a multi-coloured image or design. Like many inventions, it started in the far East and arrived in Europe in the 18th Century.
Silver	A soft, white and lustrous precious metal which is found in nature. It has the highest reflectivity of any metal and is frequently used to make high value jewellery and other decorative items. Especially when making jewellery it’s usually alloyed with copper to make it stronger (sterling silver).
Snuff box	A small ornamental box for holding snuff.
Solitaire	This is a ring which features a single diamond or other gemstone as the main feature. You may also see it used in relation to pendants with a single diamond.
Sophisticated	A book that has been restored or worked on in order to increase its apparent value, this is often seen as an undesirable quality among collectors.
Stainless steel	A form of steel which contains a high percentage of chromium. Stainless steel is very hard and is resistant to corrosion by some acids and atmospheric oxidation, unlike most other forms of steel. It is used in some modern jewellery designs.
Sterling silver or 925 silver	An alloy of 92.5% pure silver with 7.5% copper, which results in a much stronger and better wearing metal than pure silver. Sterling silver is very commonly used in jewellery making. The downside of sterling silver is that it will tarnish, but the upside is that it’s easy to remove. You might see the term 925 used in relation to sterling silver: this is the purity stamp indicating that a piece is 92.5% pure silver. Learn more about silver vs sterling silver. And, yes, sterling silver is real silver!
Subject Matter	The subject matter in art terms refers to the message the artist is trying to communicate with their audience. It can be a statement, an emotion, or an object. It can be representational or abstract.
Tankard	A form of drinkware consisting of a large, roughly cylindrical, drinking cup with a single handle.
Tempera	A fast-drying painting medium, consisting of pigments bound with a water-soluble binder such as egg yolk. It was used in ancient Egypt and in Europe until the early 15th Century when it was superseded by oil.
Titanium	A naturally occurring metal which is hard, very light weight and exhibits a wide array of beautiful colours when heated. It is used in some jewellery designs, mostly because of its colouring.
Variant	A book that differs in one or more features from others of the same impression, but a positive sequence has not been established.
Varnish	The term varnish refers to the layer or covering that an artist puts on an oil or acrylic painting to protect the paint surface. Varnish is colourless and odourless and can be removed easily by a conservator without affecting the underlying painting. It should not affect the visual appearance of a painting.
Vellum	A thin sheet of specially prepared skin of calf, lamb, or kid used for writing or printing, or for the cover.
Veneering	The fixing of thin layers of wood to the surface of a piece of furniture.
Victorian	English furniture produced during the reign of Queen Victoria, from 1837 to 1901. The styles and influences were largely revivalist and nostalgic, with the designs and forms, heavy and ornate. The period also saw the impact of the Industrial Revolution on the furniture trade. Both these were key factors in the birth of the Arts & Crafts movement.
Video	Short film with or without soundtrack to convey ideas. Popular from the 1960s to the current day.
Watercolour	Pigments bound with water and traditionally applied on white paper, with the bare paper being used for highlights, such as clouds. In the early 19th Century opaque white pigment was also used for highlights and Gum Arabic added to give resonance to dark tones. Silverfish like to eat Gum Arabic with disastrous consequences for the picture underneath!
White gold	This is gold which is alloyed with other metals to have a colour closer to silver than typical yellow gold. The other metals used may be manganese, nickel or palladium. Note that real white gold does not have the bright white finish you’ll see in many jewellery stores: it’s usually more of a warm grey colour. The bright white finish is most often achieved by plating the white gold with rhodium, which will wear off over time and need replacing. We generally don't make jewellery with white gold for this reason.
William and Mary	This was the period of English furniture making during the reign of William III and Mary II. It can be seen as the transition period of a largely pure copy of the austere Eupean Baroque style into something freer and uniquely British that would become the first great style of the 18th century, the Queen Anne period.
Woodcut	A wooden block is carved with a chisel and ink applied to the high point as opposed to the grooves.
Yapped	Refers to the edges of the cover of a book bound in paper or another soft material such as vellum. These yapped edges are not flush with the pages but extend beyond the edges of the book and are fragile by nature.

Words	Definition

Alabaster	A form of the mineral gypsum. It is typically white or grey and slightly translucent. Often used in decorative items and sculpture, alabaster can be polished up to create a smooth and attractive finish.
Armoire	A style of wardrobe. This type of wardrobe typically comes from France.
Ball foot	A simple ball-shaped foot on furniture. This type of foot was popular in the 17th century and can often be found on tables or cabinets from the period.
Ball and claw foot	A foot carved in the shape of an animal or bird’s claw holding a ball, often seen at the end of a cabriole leg.
Baluster	A turned or carved upright post, pillar or column. Often deployed to support the cornice in cabinet furniture, stems of tripod table bases and chair back-splats.
Baroque	European and English furniture of the late 17th and early 18th century. A bold pallette based on the rich and dramatic ecclesiastical architecture of the Italian Counter-Reformation.
Bombe	Bombe means “curving outward”, “bulging” or “bombe-shaped”. It is a French term used to describe pieces that feature an outward swelling curve at the front. This creates an attractive look and the style is often used for bureaus and commodes.
Chippendale	Thomas Chippendale was a leading Rococo period / mid 18th century English Furniture designer & maker, whose pattern book, The Gentleman & Cabinet-Maker’s Director, became the very benchmark of fashionable furniture of his time, all over the world, and continues to be so.
Commode	A low chest-of-drawers but later became a term for bedroom cupboards to store the porcelain potty. The commode was also used in library steps and other pieces of antique furniture.
Credenza	A sideboard and is usually very elaborate with a mirror back.
Drop-leaf	A leaf which is hinged to the side of a table, which drops at the side when not in use.
Ebonising	This is when a dark stain is used on wood to make it look like ebony.
Edwardian	English furniture from 1901 to 1910, and characterised by often lighter neo-classical revival inlaid furniture.
Elizabethan	English furniture from 1558 to 1603, and characterised by heavily carved and boldy ornamented pieces in oak.
Embossing	When wood and leather are stamped or hammered to make a decorative design protrude from the surface.
Fluting	A decoration formed by making parallel, concave grooves usually seen on column shafts and run in a vertical direction.
Frieze	The edge below the top of a piece of furniture can be plain or sometimes carved with fretwork.
Gallery	An ornamental metal or wood railing around the edge of a piece of furniture.
Georgian	English furniture from the reigns of George I, George II and George III until just before the start of the Regency period; 1714 to roughly 1805. Though this period begins with walnut and ends with satinwood and other exotic woods, the primary timber for Georgian furniture is mahogany. This was the period that saw Palladianism take over from Baroque, following on Rococo, Orientalism, Gothic and Neo Classisism.
Gesso	The substrate material applied to carved furniture as the base for painting or predominantly, gilding. In use from the Middle Ages, it is a mixture of gypsum, sizing, glue and oils.
Gilding	This describes the thin layer of gold that is applied to wood or metal, and then burnished to create a lustrous finish. Traditionally applied as gold leaf, with water onto gesso, with oil directly onto wood, and murcury onto metal.
Inlay	A decorative design or pattern that is created by imbedding pieces of one material into another. Furniture is often inlaid with contrasting woods, ivory and mother of pearl.
Jacobean	English furniture from 1603 to 1649, covering the reigns of James I and Charles I. Characterised by more carved oak and marks the beginning of the English interpretation of the Baroque style.
Jappanning	A furniture finish from the 17th and 18th centuries, whereby paints and varnishes are applied to a gesso base in order to simulate the appearance of lacquer.
Jardinière	A plant or flower container.
Kneehole desk	A desk with pedestals down either side and has a central opening for the knees of a person seated at it.
Lacquer	The oriental varnish obtained from the sap of the lacquer tree. It gives a high-gloss finish to furniture.
Neoclassical	The manner in which the designs, forms, motifs and ideals of Ancient Greek and Roman art and architecture were employed in the designs of late 18th and early 19th century English, American and European furniture.
Occasional table	A term for small tables such as side tables, coffee tables, lamp tables etc.
Ormolu	A French phrase meaning ground gold. It refers to brass mounts on furniture.
Ottoman	A low, upholstered seat without backs or arms. Sometimes used as a foot-rest and can have storage space inside.
Queen Anne	The period of English furniture from 1702 to 1714, dominated from the top by the British stylistic interpretation of the Baroque, with walnut being the principal timber.
Regency	The period of English furniture that went beyond the bounds of the strict Regency rule of 1811-1820, spanning from the late 18th century to the 1830’s. It is characterised by an eclectic and original combination of the neo-classical, the exotic, the Oriental and the Egyptian.
Relief	A decoration that is raised from the surface of a piece of furniture. It can be carved, stamped or moulded so as to protrude from the surface to form a pattern.
Rocco	The style and design ideal that dominated the middle part of the 18th century. A form that originated in France and is literally translated as ‘rock work’, it was the perfect antithesis to the Baroque before and the neo-classicism that followed, with its asymmetric, naturalistic and picturesque motifs and curvilinear forms, designed to encourage informality, playfulness and comfort.
Sideboard	A large piece of dining-room furniture with a flat top and sometimes a back for displaying china and glass. The body is a storage unit, composed of drawers, sometimes flanked on each side by cabinets with doors.
Veneering	The fixing of thin layers of wood to the surface of a piece of furniture.
Victorian	English furniture produced during the reign of Queen Victoria, from 1837 to 1901. The styles and influences were largely revivalist and nostalgic, with the designs and forms, heavy and ornate. The period also saw the impact of the Industrial Revolution on the furniture trade. Both these were key factors in the birth of the Arts & Crafts movement.
William and Mary	This was the period of English furniture making during the reign of William III and Mary II. It can be seen as the transition period of a largely pure copy of the austere Eupean Baroque style into something freer and uniquely British that would become the first great style of the 18th century, the Queen Anne period.

Words	Definition

Acrylic	Plastic equivalent of oil paint.
Aquatint	A variant of etching, which strives for tone rather than outline.
Assemblage	Similar to collage, but usually everyday objects assembled to convey a three-dimensional idea.
Board	In the 18th Century “Book Boards” were used. These are the insides of hard-backed books, without the leather covering. By the early 19th Century, Artists’ Colourmen, such as Thomas Brown of Holborn, were producing “Millboards”, specially manufactured artist’s boards, with a smooth white surface. Such boards are still available, sometimes with a canvas-textured surface.
Brushwork	The term brushwork describes how an artist controls the paint on the canvas or paper he is working on - how he manipulates it on the surface. It is the physical act of applying paint to canvas. Brushstrokes impart texture and colour onto the surface and they are one of the main individual characteristics of an artist’s practice.
Canvas	Very strong woven fabric, usually made of cotton or jute.
Card	A thinner version of board.
Charcoal	When used for drawing, it is made of willow or vine twigs heated at a high temperature, without oxygen, in an enclosed vessel to produce a solid stick.
Collage	A form of visual art, where various elements, paper, photographs, objects are glued together to convey an idea or message from the French coller: To Glue
Condition	Condition refers to the state of preservation of a work of art. It includes alterations imposed by time and men on an object and on the ideas it was designed to express.
Conservation and Restoration	Cleaning, preserving, and repairing works of art is known as art conservation, and the people who do this specialized work are called conservators. Conservation covers a wide range of issues and solutions which vary considerably depending on the medium involved – oil painting, sculpture or works on paper. The aim is to bring the work of art back to as near the original state as the artist intended as possible. All work should be fully reversable and not alter the physical state of the artwork in question.
Conte Crayon	A waxier form of pastel made by mixing powdered graphite or iron oxide with clay. Used for drawing in red or black.
Copper	Polished copper and sometimes silvered copper, were used in the Netherlands, Italy and Germany, often near copper mines. Copies on copper by Flemish artists were very popular in Spain in the 17^th Century, because of their durability in transit and ability to cope with Spanish summers without changing shape.
Cradling on the back of a panel	In order to give a panel extra support, many artists produce a bracing system (cradling) for their panels. While this is not an option for solid wood panels due to their expansion and contraction over time, manufactured panels are structurally sound enough to be cradled.
Craquelure	Craquelure refers to an effect on an oil painting which is caused by the drying of the topmost layer of paint. This drying process can cause a network of shallow cracks to develop across the topmost layer or the paint – the severity of these cracks or craquelure can vary from faint to severe.
Crayon	Coloured Pencil
Drypoint	Is another intaglio printing technique like etching and engraving.
Engraving	Using a steel plate, which being much harder than copper can produce several thousand prints without the image blurring.
Etching	Original works of art produced by an artist or print maker scratching an image using a steel burin (a needle-like instrument) into a copper plate. Later the surface of the copper is covered in wax and acid is used to eat out the line. Next, having removed the wax, the copper plate is covered with ink. The ink is then wiped from the surface but stays in the grooves. A sheet of wet paper is then placed on the surface and the paper and plate are put into a press. The pressure forces the wet paper into the grooves and it then absorbs the ink and produces an image.
Gesso	Panels were often prepared with Gesso, a water-based plaster, that fills in the wrinkles in the grain of the wood.
Giclee	A digital printing process in which an ink-jet printer is used to produce a high-quality art print.
Gouache	An opaque version of watercolour.
Iconography	Iconography is a particular range or system of types of image used by artists to convey particular meanings. For example in Christian religious painting there is an iconography of images such as the lamb which represents Christ, or the dove which represents the Holy Spirit.
Impasto	An Italian word meaning ‘mixture’ - impasto describes a painting technique where the artist applies paint thickly onto the surface of the canvas or panel, so that brushstrokes or palette knife marks are highly visible.
Linen	A weaker woven fabric used in the 15^th Century akin to canvas.
Lining a Canvas	The term ‘Lining’ refers to a conservation technique which involves attaching a new fabric support to the back of a canvas painting. The process can help to safely support the painting. This is used to strengthen, flatten or consolidate oil paintings on canvas when the original canvas has become unstable due to age or to damage. The process is sometimes referred to as ‘Relining’. Most often a new support will be added directly to the back of an existing canvas. In cases of extreme decay, however, the original canvas may be completely removed and replaced. In cases where the damage is small in relation to the overall canvas support – such as a little hole or tear – a small patch can be used instead to support the specific location as apposed to lining the entire painting. This is called Patch Lining or Strip Lining if the edges of the canvas are the only areas being strengthened.
Linocut	Same as a woodcut except using lino. The technique was invented by AW Seaby around the time of the First World War.
Lithograph	Is a similar process but using stone (Lithos in Greek) instead of a copper plate. The result looks like an original drawing.
Mezzotint	Similar process, but the copper plate is covered in tiny holes made by a steel rocker, consisting of numerous little spikes. At this early stage, the piece of paper when inked, would look virtually black, whence the French name “La Manière Noire” or “La Manière Anglaise”. Then the plate is smoothed with a burin, a burnisher with a round end and a scraper with a triangular end. Subtle variations in tone can be achieved . The technique was introduced to England by Prince Rupert of The Rhine, who is better known as one Charles I’s cavalry commanders in the Civil War.
Mixed Media	A combination of materials/mediums.
Monotype	As the name implies, is a one-off print using the same technique as above, but where the matrix (plate or stone) is destroyed.
Oil	A compound of pigments, such as vegetable material and minerals, bound with linseed oil or occasionally nut oils. Traditionally, these pigments were ground in a pestle and mortar, but were available in tube form from the 19th Century.
Paint Surface	This refers to the physical surface of a work of art, and can refer to the physical condition or the work itself, or refer to the artistic characterisitcs of the painting i.e. the brushstrokes or impasto.
Panel	In Northern Europe the most common panels were made of Baltic Oak, although Rembrandt twice used Mahogany. In Italy the panels were made of softer woods such as Lime, Walnut and Poplar and these are more prone to woodworm.
Pastel	Sticks of chalk bound with pigment. They come in varying degrees of hardness.
Photography	Can be anything from reportage to aesthetic ideas using the medium of a photograph
Sculpture	Stone or wood carved into naturalistic or abstract form or metal, glass, plastic etc. moulded for the same purpose.
Sepia	A dye made from cuttlefish ink, which it exudes as a defensive screen. Sepia is the Latin for Cuttlefish.
Silkscreen	Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen to fill the open mesh apertures with ink, and a reverse stroke then causes the screen to touch the substrate momentarily along a line of contact. This causes the ink to wet the substrate and be pulled out of the mesh apertures as the screen springs back after the blade has passed. One colour is printed at a time, so several screens can be used to produce a multi-coloured image or design. Like many inventions, it started in the far East and arrived in Europe in the 18th Century.
Subject Matter	The subject matter in art terms refers to the message the artist is trying to communicate with their audience. It can be a statement, an emotion, or an object. It can be representational or abstract.
Tempera	A fast-drying painting medium, consisting of pigments bound with a water-soluble binder such as egg yolk. It was used in ancient Egypt and in Europe until the early 15th Century when it was superseded by oil.
Varnish	The term varnish refers to the layer or covering that an artist puts on an oil or acrylic painting to protect the paint surface. Varnish is colourless and odourless and can be removed easily by a conservator without affecting the underlying painting. It should not affect the visual appearance of a painting.
Video	Short film with or without soundtrack to convey ideas. Popular from the 1960s to the current day.
Watercolour	Pigments bound with water and traditionally applied on white paper, with the bare paper being used for highlights, such as clouds. In the early 19th Century opaque white pigment was also used for highlights and Gum Arabic added to give resonance to dark tones. Silverfish like to eat Gum Arabic with disastrous consequences for the picture underneath!
Woodcut	A wooden block is carved with a chisel and ink applied to the high point as opposed to the grooves.

Words	Definition

Association Copy	A book that belonged to or was annotated by the author, someone close to the author, a famous or noteworthy person, or someone especially associated with the content of the work. Should have documentary evidence of its association, such as the author's bookplate.
Autograph Letter, Signed	A handwritten letter signed by the writer.
Cancel	A tipped-in (i.e., pasted in) page to replace a page removed after a book has been bound.
Cocked	A condition resulting from storing a book on a shelf so that it leans. Gravity deforms the book binding. Cocked also refers to a book where the spine no longer remains at right angles to the covers.
Collation	Technically, the examination and notation of the physical make-up of a book. By checking for the presence of every leaf or page originally in the volume when issued, a book may be collated as complete.
Colophon	An identifying inscription or emblem from the printer or publisher appearing at the end of a book.
Contemporary	Refers to the time at which an action happened to the book in relation to its printing. For instance, a contemporary binding is a book that has been re-bound shortly after being published. A contemporary inscription would have been signed and dated in the year of publication.
Damp-stained	A light stain on the cover or on the leaves of a book caused by moisture.
Dedication Copy	The copy of the book inscribed by the author to the person to whom the book is dedicated.
End Papers	The sheets of paper pasted onto the inner covers, joining the book block to the covers. One side of the sheet is pasted to the inside cover, the other is left free.
Ephemera	Printed or written items intended to have a short lifetime that are now collectable. Examples include posters, postcards, tickets, maps and pamphlets.
Errata	Usually encountered in the term "errata slip," a small sheet of paper laid into a book by a publisher after discovering errors prior to publication.
First Edition	Generally used to mean the first appearance of a work in book or pamphlet form, in its first printing.
First Thus	Means not a first edition, but something that is new. It may be revised, have a new introduction by the author or someone else, be the first publication in paperback form, or first by another publisher.
First Trade Edition	The edition produced for general commercial sale, as distinguished from a limited edition.
Flyleaf	A blank leaf, sometimes more than one, following the front free endpaper or at the end of a book where there is not sufficient text to fill out the last few pages.
Fore-Edge Painting	The leading edges of the book are bent back to expose a greater area and a watercolour painting is applied to this surface.
Foxing	Brown spotting of the paper caused by a chemical reaction, generally found in 19th century books, particularly in steel engravings of the period.
Frontispiece	An illustration at the beginning of a book, usually facing the title page.
Gathering	A group of sheets folded together for sewing or gluing into the binding.
Gilt Edges	The application of gilt to various edges on a book. For example: all edges gilt, or top edge gilt.
Gutter	The inner margin of the leaves of a bound book.
Incunabula	Books, pamphlets, calendars, and indulgences printed, not handwritten, before 1501 in Europe.
Issue points	Noted changes between various copies of the same book. Since collectors generally prefer the earliest issue, they often use small changes (such as a spelling correction) to determine priority and any such difference is described as an issue point.
Large Paper Copy	A type of special edition typically printed in smaller quantities and sold at a higher price than the standard print run. In these runs a larger paper (often of superior quality) was used.
Limited Edition	Any book whose publication is deliberately restricted to a comparatively small number of copies, usually numbered and often signed by the author and/or illustrator.
Marginalia	Notes written in the margins of a page around the text. Frequently made by students and others when studying a text.
Octavo (8vo)	A book of about five inches wide and eight inches tall to about six by nine inches. Octavo is the most common size for current hardcover books. To make octavo books, each sheet of paper is folded to make eight leaves (16 pages).
Original Boards	The original binding that the book was published in, as opposed to contemporary binding or rebound.
Page	One side of a leaf. The front side of a leaf is called the recto or obverse and the back side of the leaf is called the verso or the reverse.
Panel	The front or back of a dust jacket, as opposed to the spine or flaps.
Presentation Copy	A copy of a book given by the author to someone of his/her acquaintance, usually with an inscription of some sort testifying to this.
Private Press	A small press, often operated by one person, usually devoted to the production of small quantities of finely printed books.
Privately Printed	This term refers to a book or pamphlet whose printing was paid for by an individual, or a group, and which is meant for private circulation, not public sale.
Provenance	The history of ownership or possession of a given book.
Sheet	The piece of paper on which the printer prints. The sheet is folded one or more times to form the leaves of the book.
Sophisticated	A book that has been restored or worked on in order to increase its apparent value, this is often seen as an undesirable quality among collectors.
Variant	A book that differs in one or more features from others of the same impression, but a positive sequence has not been established.
Vellum	A thin sheet of specially prepared skin of calf, lamb, or kid used for writing or printing, or for the cover.
Yapped	Refers to the edges of the cover of a book bound in paper or another soft material such as vellum. These yapped edges are not flush with the pages but extend beyond the edges of the book and are fragile by nature.

Words	Definition

Ceramic	Derived from the Greek word ‘Keramos’ meaning earthen vessel, although many items are described as ceramic now, not just vessels!
Crazing	When the surface of a glaze appears to have minute cracks that are not within the body of the item, causing a random network and appearing to be ‘crazy’.
Enamel	A fusible vitreous coating, look at colourful items with an almost metallic sheen to them, also cloisonne and champleve.
Glaze	A thin layer of coating, that almost appears like a glass covering, usually applied prior to firing.
Hairline crack	A very slight crack within the body of an item, usually very fine and by definition only the width of a hair!
Majolica	A soft colourful opaque glaze, often seen in Italian, French and Spanish pieces.
Salt Glaze	A method of applying a glaze to earthenware items by (literally) throwing a hand full of salt into the kiln whilst firing, the resultant vapour reacts with the item and thus creates the glaze.

Words	Definition

Case	The protective housing for the movement and dial.
Crystal	The glass that covers and protects the dial and hands.
Dial	Where the indices are displayed to indicate the time, these can be Roman or Arabic numerals, or simple dots, or dashes, also can be referred to as the ‘face’.
Hands	The long pieces upon the dial that rotate and indicate the time on the dial.
Movement	The mechanism that powers the clock and ‘moves’ the hands around the dial.

Words	Definition

Alloy	An alloy is a mixture of metals or a mixture of a metal and another element. All gold less than 24ct is an alloy of pure gold with one or more other metals. Sterling silver is an alloy of pure silver (92.5%) and copper (7.5%). Alloying is usually done to make an improved version of the main metal: it can make it harder, less prone to tarnish (or the opposite can be a downside), a different colour, lower cost or add other desirable features.
Assay	An assay is a process used to determine the purity of precious metals and to test that precious metals have been created to the specific purity they are stated to have.
Baguette	A faceted gemstone that has a rectangular-cut which is more complex than an emerald cut.
Baroque Pearl	A pearl with an irregular shape is considered to be a baroque pearl. These pearls can be smooth egg or teardrop shapes, or they may be more lumpy and have complex shapes. Often baroque pearls used in jewellery are quite large. Both cultured and natural pearls can form to be baroque, but they are more common in cultured freshwater pearls.
Bezel	A type of gemstone setting which is usually used for cabochon gemstones, but a similar type of setting using a small tube can be used with facetted gemstones (this may be called a tube setting). For a bezel setting a rim of metal is pushed and/or rubbed over the edge of the gemstone to hold it in place. Usually these settings are made in silver or gold.
Birthstones	A birthstone is a specific gemstone (or sometimes more than one) which is linked to a month of birth. It's thought that people have been wearing birthstones in this way since around the 16th or 17th century, but the tradition really took off in more recent times. Various gemstone societies around the world have created more modern lists of birthstones, which don't always agree with one another, which is why you'll sometimes see your birth month has more than one stone associated with it.
Bolt clasp or bolt ring	A clasp which has a circular shape. It has a tiny spring inside which is connected to a bolt which you can operate with a fingernail or fingertip to open before it springs closed.
Brilliant cut	A type of cut used for diamonds. Brilliant cut stones are usually round in shape and have 58 facets.
Briolette	A cut of gemstone which is pear shaped and usually faceted for extra sparkle. Briolette beads can have holes drilled through the sides at the top or all the way through the centre from top to bottom in order to be attached to jewellery.
Cabochon	A cabochon is a gemstone cut which has a flat back and rounded top. Most often cabochon gemstones have a smooth, highly polished surface, but they can also be faceted on top in what is known as a rose cut design.
Carats and karats: Gold	When used in relation to gold a carat is a measure of purity. The spelling is 'karat' in the USA and some other countries, but the meaning is exactly the same. The higher the number, the more pure the gold is, with the maximum being 24 (pure gold). For lower carats the gold is alloyed with other metals, making it more suitable for use in jewellery making. You'll see 'ct', 'kt' or 'K' used as shorthand or purity stamps by jewellers to refer to gold carats or karats.
Carats: Gemstones	When the term carat is used in relation to diamonds and other gemstones, it is referring to the mass (or weight) of the stones: the higher the number, the greater the weight. In this case the spelling is the same worldwide.
Clarity	Clarity is a term used to refer to the degree to which a gemstone has flaws in it. The greater the clarity, generally the higher the value of the stone. However, lab grown gemstones usually have perfect clarity, but are still relatively inexpensive.
Cluster setting	A type of design where smaller gemstones are set around a larger stone as a focal point. Most often seen on rings.
Cocktail Ring	A cocktail ring usually has a relatively large focal point which sits on top of or at the centre of the band to make a statement. These rings are often large may not be suitable for everyday wear as they can get in the way of day-to-day work. But they sure are fun to wear when dressing up!
Constume Jewellery or fashion jewellery	The general consensus is that costume jewellery (or fashion jewellery) is any jewellery not made with precious metals or gemstones. These terms date to the early 20th century. Costume jewellery was traditionally created with cheaper materials including rhinestones, nickel, brass or pewter. It was particularly popular during the Great Depression and World War II when materials were scarce or expensive. Modern costume jewellery features a wider array of materials and can include simulated gemstones, glass, plastic, shell, plated base metals and much more.
Cultured pearl	Pearls which are created under controlled conditions with the help of farmers. Cultured pearls can be created using either freshwater river molluscs or traditional saltwater pearl oysters.
Emerald Cut	This relatively minimalist gemstone cut is square or rectangular and is generally used for large and transparent gemstones.
Enamel Jewellery	Jewellery items covered in a relatively thick decorative coating that is applied to a metal. Usually the enamel is coloured. Traditional enamel is made up of glass powder which is fused to the metal using high temperatures, usually in a kiln. Today cold enamel may be used, which is an epoxy based colouring solution which dries hard and sticks to the metal.
Engraving	In relation to jewellery, this is the process of cutting an often highly detailed design or text in the surface of metal using specialised tools known as gravers. It may also be done using power tools with tiny burs, but this has much poorer results. Proper engraving requires a very high degree of skill and is often done by a Master Engraver who specialises in this type of work.
Etching	This is the process of making designs on metal by using an acid to corrode away the part of the design you want removed. This results in a less crisp finish than engraving, but it has a beauty all of its own.
Facets	Facets are the flat surfaces which are created on a cut stone or glass. They can also form in nature.
Facetted Gemstone	A facetted gemstone has cut surfaces to help it catch the light and sparkle. The most common cut is usually a classic diamond shape. The top of the gemstone has multiple facets and the back ends at a point in the centre. Is usually set in a claw or prong setting. Cabochon cut gemstones may also be faceted on top and flat on the back, which is usually called a rose cut.
Filigree	A highly ornamental type of jewellery making where precious metal wire is twisted to form delicate tracework patterns.
Fine Silver	Fine silver is basically pure silver. The technical definition of pure silver is that it has a silver content of at least 99.9%. Although it tarnishes far less than sterling silver, it has limited uses in jewellery making due to being very soft and pliable. Most jewellery is made in the alloy sterling silver.
Freshwater pearls	Freshwater pearls are cultivated in molluscs which live in freshwater rather than oysters which live in saltwater. These pearls can be created in a wide array of shapes and are less expensive than saltwater pearls.
Fretwork	An ornamental design which is intricately cut into metal (or traditionally wood) with a fretsaw or jeweller's piercing saw so that parts of the design are removed.
Gemstone	The definition of a gemstone is: a mineral crystal which is cut and polished in order to be used in jewellery or other decorative items. However, some rocks (eg. lapis lazuli, opal, and jade) and organic materials (eg. pearl and amber) are also used in a similar way and are often also considered to be gemstones. Precious gemstones are diamonds, rubies, emeralds and sapphires, while semi-precious gemstones are all other gemstones. Lab grown or simulated gemstones are manmade and generally not as costly as natural stones, although they may be more perfect. Pastes, glass beads or Swarovski type pieces are not gemstones.
Gilding	A number of decorative techniques which are used for applying fine gold leaf, foil or powder to a surface. In terms of jewellery making we occasionally use an ancient technique to bond gold foil to other metals, primarily sterling silver. Gilded finishes should be treated with care as they are delicate.
Hallmarks or purity stamps	A mark or stamp usually indicating a standard of purity and sometimes the provenance of a piece which is used in marking gold and silver items, including jewellery. Hallmarks indicating purity are not required by law in Australia, but may be required for items made in other countries. In Europe particularly there are strong laws around the use of hallmarks and only certain stamps can be used in different countries.
Inclusion	These are visible flaws which can be seen inside a gemstone. These can include foreign objects, fractures in the stone, abnormal crystals, etc.. Generally speaking the more included a gemstone is, the lower its value. However, inclusions can be quite beautiful and make each gemstone featuring them unique. Some gemstones, like moss agate, are valued because of their beautiful inclusions.
Lab grown gemstones	Lab grown gemstones are made in laboratories rather than being found in nature and mined. Usually they are created in the same way as the natural variation, but in a way that is vastly quicker, less expensive and much less damaging. The outcome is a gemstone that is largely identical to the mined version, but lab created gemstones are usually perfect in terms of quality and clarity. The benefits of lab grown and simulated gems are that they are much more affordable and often more sustainable and ethical than high value mined gems.
Marquise	A gemstone cut which has an oval shape with two pointed ends on its longest axis.
MOHS scale	This scale of 1 to 10 which is used in relation to jewellery to measure the hardness of gemstones. Diamonds have a hardness of 10, making them one of the hardest materials.
Mother of pearl	An iridescent coating which is formed on the inside of oyster shells. It is used to create beads and pendants. Also known as nacre.
Oxidised or blackened silver	Silver or sterling silver which has had a chemical applied to it in order to blacken it as a decorative element. It is a form of patination (see below). Most often you'll see a recessed pattern blackened, while the raised areas are shiny silver. The chemicals most often used for this process are liver of sulphur or a hydrochloric acid solution. The chemicals are entirely rinsed from the metal after they have created the blackened effect. The blackening is a thin surface finish and may wear away over time, particularly in exposed areas.
Pear cut	A gemstone which is cut into a teardrop shape.
Plating	A surface covering in which a metal is deposited on a conductive surface: in jewellery this is most often another metal, for instance gold plating applied to brass or silver plating to nickel. Plating can be done in a variety of thicknesses and this will determine how hard wearing it is. Flash plating is very thin, while vermeil plating is usually quite thick (and it is applied to sterling silver rather than a base metal) - see below for more info about vermeil. All plating will wear through eventually, so care should be taken with such designs.
Platinum	A naturally occurring metal which is white in colour and very heavy. Like gold it is generally non-corroding. It is difficult to work and is more expensive than gold, making its use in jewellery relatively rare.
Princess cut	A faceted gemstone which has a square-cut. It may also be known as a quadrillion or squarillion.
Rose cut gemstone	A variation of a cabochon gemstone cut which has a flat bottom and a dome-shaped top. Unlike a regular smooth cabochon, the top of a rose cut gem has a number of facets cut into it (anywhere from 3 to 24).
Rose gold	Rose gold jewellery is created with an alloy of gold and copper, with the copper content providing the altered colour to yellow gold. Rose gold is also known as pink gold and red gold, but the different names usually relate to the amount of copper used: the higher the copper content, the stronger the red colouration.
Semi-precious gemstones	All natural gemstones that are not one of the 4 in the 'precious gemstones' category (see above) are considered to be semi-precious stones. This includes gemstones that are generally more valuable than the 4 precious stones and those gemstones that are in the same families as the precious stones (eg. emerald is a type of beryl, as is aquamarine, but only emeralds are considered precious). These designations are not scientific at all, but are still commonly used. We're not big fans of them!
Silver	A soft, white and lustrous precious metal which is found in nature. It has the highest reflectivity of any metal and is frequently used to make high value jewellery and other decorative items. Especially when making jewellery it’s usually alloyed with copper to make it stronger (sterling silver).
Solitaire	This is a ring which features a single diamond or other gemstone as the main feature. You may also see it used in relation to pendants with a single diamond.
Stainless steel	A form of steel which contains a high percentage of chromium. Stainless steel is very hard and is resistant to corrosion by some acids and atmospheric oxidation, unlike most other forms of steel. It is used in some modern jewellery designs.
Sterling silver or 925 silver	An alloy of 92.5% pure silver with 7.5% copper, which results in a much stronger and better wearing metal than pure silver. Sterling silver is very commonly used in jewellery making. The downside of sterling silver is that it will tarnish, but the upside is that it’s easy to remove. You might see the term 925 used in relation to sterling silver: this is the purity stamp indicating that a piece is 92.5% pure silver. Learn more about silver vs sterling silver. And, yes, sterling silver is real silver!
Titanium	A naturally occurring metal which is hard, very light weight and exhibits a wide array of beautiful colours when heated. It is used in some jewellery designs, mostly because of its colouring.
White gold	This is gold which is alloyed with other metals to have a colour closer to silver than typical yellow gold. The other metals used may be manganese, nickel or palladium. Note that real white gold does not have the bright white finish you’ll see in many jewellery stores: it’s usually more of a warm grey colour. The bright white finish is most often achieved by plating the white gold with rhodium, which will wear off over time and need replacing. We generally don't make jewellery with white gold for this reason.

Words	Definition

Applied	Ornament or decoration made separately and added on to original item.
Assay	The testing of precious metals to verify that they contain only the legal proportion of base metal alloy.
Bright-cut	An engraving technique used in 18^th/early 19^th century which produced a brilliant, faceted effect.
Caddy spoon	A spoon used for measuring out tea in the form of dried tea leaves.
Candelabra	A candle holder with multiple arms.
Canteen	A full canteen consists of twelve place settings. A half-canteen consists of six place settings. A double canteen consists of twenty-four place settings etc. The components of a canteen vary according to particular tastes and desires. Standard components are table and dessert forks, table (or soup) and dessert spoons, and usually teaspoons. Knives may or may not be included. Further items can include other eating implements such as fish eaters and serving items such as ladles. Canteens of silver can be supplied loose, in cutlery rolls or within a fitted box.
Chalice	A footed cup intended to hold a drink
Chamber stick	A holder for one or more candles, used for illumination, rituals, or decorative purposes. Chamber sticks are smaller than candlesticks and are desidnged to be carried
Chased	Decoration on the surface of the metal which doesn’t cut away but coaxes the metal
Duty mark	The Sovereign’s head struck on all silver ware, (some exclusions for small silver pieces)
Electroplate	Base metal of copper or nickel coated in silver by electrolysis
Embossing	The processes of creating either raised or recessed relief images and designs.
Flatware	Cutlery, tableware
Gauge	The thickness of the metal
Hallmarks	Small stamped symbols on the back or underside of silver items can tell you the purity of the silver, the manufacturer of the piece, and sometimes even the date it was made.
Hollow-ware	Vessels such as jugs, tankards etc as opposed to flatware
Loaded	Hollow items of silver/plated ware that have been filled for stability, ie candlesticks
Patina	Natural process of oxidation over time resulting in darkening/dulling of the metal
Provincial silver	Silver made and hallmarked by assay offices other than London, ie York, in Scotland other than Glasgow and Edinburgh ie Wick, Perth etc
Sheffield plate	Silver fused/hammered by hand to base metal, often copper, as opposed the chemical process of electro-plating
Snuff box	A small ornamental box for holding snuff.
Tankard	A form of drinkware consisting of a large, roughly cylindrical, drinking cup with a single handle.