Yorkshire Coast Fossils
 

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As jet of the finest quality can only be found near the historic fishing town of Whitby
which is situated on the North Yorkshire coast, it is fitting that Whitby was at the
centre of that most remarkable period in the history of jet, the Victorian era.


 

 

picture of whitby






Although as many as ten jet workshops were operating in Whitby by 1815, it was not
until the mid-1800s that the jet industry became truly well established, with demand increasing not least due to the opening up of Whitby via the railway combined with Victorians' love of seaside holiday souvenirs. However, it was the Victorian vogue for
jet mourning jewellery which contributed most significantly to the growth of the
Whitby jet industry at this time. Victorian fashion was predominantly class-led,
with Queen Victoria herself ultimately setting the example.
 
 

picture of queen vic


Jet has been associated with mourning in the Royal Court since 1830, but it was the
deaths of the Duke of Wellington and Prince Albert in 1852 and 1861 respectively
 which really stimulated wider public demand for jet mourning jewellery. The Whitby jet industry was at it's height in 1873, at which time approximately 1,500 men were
employed in some 200 manufacturing workshops. Raw jet was not only being avidly collected from local beaches, but was being commercially excavated at a number of
 inland locations in the North York Moors area, with mines extending as far inland as Bilsdale and Osmotherly. However, in spite of efforts of miners to procure ever
increasing amounts of raw jet, demand became so great in the 1870s and 80s that
some manufacturers resorted to using inferior 'soft' jet (see What is Whitby Jet ?)
sourced either locally from geological layers in the cliffs other than the jet-rock
proper itself, or from France and Spain.
 
 

old jet workshop sutcliffe






Items worked from 'soft' jet began to craze and crack soon after they were sold. In addition to such problems  of quality control, fashions in the latter part of the 19th
century - particularly the Art Nouveau 'naughty nineties - dictated the wearing of
much smaller pieces of jewellery.