| agate : A type of multi-colored quartz or silicon dioxide. |
| aigrette : A type of hair accessory that was either feather shaped or had a hair fastener from which a bird’s feather could be attached. A spring was often included in the device so that the feather moved with the wearer. |
| ambrotype : A photographic technique developed in the 1850s that consists of a negative on glass with the reverse of the glass painted or lacquered black to make the image look positive. |
| amethyst : A transparent quartz that ranges in a variety of purple hues. |
| amphora drops : A decorative gold element in a form inspired by a classical oval Greek vessel, featuring two-handles and tapering to a point at the base. Amphorae were used chiefly to hold oil, wine, or other liquids. |
| anvil : A heavy iron block with a smooth face upon which metals, usually heated until soft, are hammered into desired shapes. |
| artois buckles : Oversized shoe buckles popular in the 1770s and 1780s named after the Comte d’Artois. These buckles were worn by both men and women and came in variety of decoration ranging from plain metal to pastes and diamonds. |
| austrian crystal : A type of colorless glass which resembles rock crystal and contains between 10% and 24% lead oxide. Crystal glass can be colored by adding various metallic oxides to the melt and is used extensively in costume jewelry for beads and stones. In 1892, Daniel Swarovski patented the first machine to cut crystal, allowing the process to become faster and more precise. |
