Georg Jensen was the Danish silversmith company established in 1904 by Georg Jensen (1866 - 1935) that led the way with new Scandinavian design from the turn of the century and in particular gave a distinctiveness and pre eminence to Danish design innovation in silverware and jewellery . the company grew from worshop size to a modern sizeable firm with Danish roots but an international reach and a world wide popularity to match . I always wanted to own some Georg Jensen silver and ultimately I achieved my ambition not in the line of jewellery but rather I successfully purchased a set of GJ boxed cuttlery and was thrilled to own such beautiful timeless pieces of flatware. GJ jewellery has remained elusive and I have has to be happy with the work of other Danish designers. This book is exclusively about Georg Jensen jewelry and this gorgeous book on wonderful jewelry has to satisfy my acquisitive urges, Ths book is a major reference source , at 350 pages and Illustrated with hundreds of illustrations , many in color this is an authoritative guide to Jensen jewelry and design . Jensen died in the mid 1930/ but his firm continues to the present with 30 + designers and silversmiths encapsulating the best of 20th century Danish silver creativity in silver jewellery . Some gold items were produced such as the pendant earrings (p262-3) but that understated silver and cabochon stone set pieces are what we most readily identify with Jensen . Diamonds and facets stones were not used , instead the popular stones were opals, moonstones,, garnets, amber, turquoise , labradorite and lapis lazuli . This is silver jewellery that is classic in design and timeless in appeal. You can see in the illustrations the mix of a polished silver sheen and an almost blackened tarnish that sharpens the contrast . The Jensen designs were rooted in the fluidity of the sinuous floral art nouveau but also adapted over time to new angular , cleaner lines of art deco and then back to the look of the 1950s . The last work illustrated was designed by Nanna Ditzel in 1994, she was born in 1924 and is still alive and active. this book includes biographies of the principal and known or key 20th century designers and makers of jewellery a useful bibliography and a practical and comprehensive coverage of the changing company silver marks which is incredibly helpful in identification . This work is not a monograph but is a compilation of 5 essays by different experts plus an introduction by David Taylor, the book is also an illustrated exhibition catalogue of the Jensen His designers' Work ... A centenary exhibition covering the history of the firm (2004) and as such brought together Jensen jewelry from a variety of museums and private collectors and held at the Bard Graduate Centre for studies in the decorative Arts. Design and Culture . This is a beautifully produced book (printed by Yale University Press) and the appeal is both to the European and the American collector, I particularly liked the quality of the illustrations , of actual pieces with precise measurements; I also liked the context of juxtaposing jewelry against other beautifully designed objects such. Vases and cigarette cases , hair combs . there are photographs of design pages, and the shop fronts . This is an excellent history of the man , his firm and his jewellery that established a consistently high standard and a timeless Collectability . I purchased this book for $30 plus $10 postage in 2006 from Alibris . I rate the book at 5 stars based on range of information , scholarly research, quality and quantity of photographs and sheer visual appeal . ( )