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.
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.
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.
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