JEWELCRAFT by CORO Pale Gold-tone Feathery Leaf Necklace, Bracelet & Clip-on retailer Earrings Matching Set, Coro Parure, Vintage 1960s

Here is a rather beautiful parure - that is a three-piece matching set - comprising necklace, bracelet and clip-on earrings, unsigned, but carrying the famous Jewelcraft hangtag on the necklace. This is a well-known Jewelcraft design, and is an immensely pretty matching set - the individual links on the necklace are in a feathery leaf design which sit around your neck and lie beautifully flat. This was a very popular style back in the late 50s and early 60s !! The matching bracelet is a double row of the same motif, and is quite heavy, giving it a substantial quality.

*The clip-on earrings are a single motif and you will of course notice immediately that these are both the same way round, designed for the left ear only. The set came with these but I am throwing them in for free as they are not a proper pair. They are wearable of course, but one will have to go at a bit of an angle to sit straight. Therefore I am pricing this set for the necklace and bracelet only.

The bracelet measures only 18cms long, so it's one for slender wrists, and 3.2cms wide as it's a double motif design (7" x 1 1/4") The earrings measure 3.3cms long x 2 cms wide (1 3/8" x 3/4")
The necklace measures 41 cms long and 1.5cms wide (16" x 5/8") with the very distinctive signature Coro hang-tag at one end - this looks like a tiny mouse hanging on for dear life, suspended on a peardrop shape.
The earrings measure 3.5cms long (1 3/8") and have nice secure clips.

These are from the enormous Coro stable, and I have been trying to find vintage adverts from that era, for this popular Coro design, but to no avail, although, God knows, there are loads of vintage Coro/Corocraft/Jewelcraft ads out there !!

CONDITION
The bracelet has a little bit of wear on the surface of the goldtone finish, showing the darker base metal underneath here and there. This isn't too serious, but don't expect a perfect item here. The necklace and earrings however are both in really nice condition.
This used to be signed with the script signature of Jewelcraft, on the earrings clips. Sadly the signatures have retailer now all but rubbed off but you can see the faint bumps in the metal - a very common thing with Jewelcraft items unfortunately. That peardrop hangtag identifies this as well as the signature though, plus this is a very famous Jewelcraft design.

CORO – COROCRAFT / JEWELCRAFT
Both Jewelcraft and Corocraft were the names used by US company Coro. In the sixties, they were the biggest selling company of costume jewellery in the UK.
Emanuel Cohn, a New York business man founded the Coro empire in around 1902 and called it E Cohn & Company. In 1904 Carl Rosenberger became a partner and the firm was renamed Cohn and Rosenberger.

The new company produced findings for several items including sautoirs and collar pins. In 1911 the original owner, Emanuel Cohn died, and his family sold their share to his partner Carl. Carl Rosenberger was responsible for the growth of the company, and by combining his and Cohn's name the new name of 'Coro' was born. Steady growth continued under his guidance. A factory was opened in New York and the line of items produced expanded. The name Coro was officially used for the first time in 1943. The company went on to become the largest costume jewellery manufacturer in the world.

From 1933, Coro planned to sell jewellery across Europe from Sussex, but firstly had to fight a famous court case with Ciro Pearls. Ciro (a UK company) did not want the US company to use the name 'Coro'. It was too similar, but eventually, after years of wrangling Coro agreed to use only the name 'Corocraft' & 'Jewelcraft' in the UK. So in 1948 production of Corocraft finally got started. Corocraft was Coro's high-end range. Many pieces were in sterling silver with a gold plate, particularly during WW2 and in the 1950s, when other metals were in short supply.
Surprisingly there are less signed Corocraft pieces here. Mostly because they were produced unsigned and distributed on cards or boxes with the logo on.

'Jewelcraft' branding by Coro had started in the 1920s in the US. By the 1950s, it was produced in England, and was sometimes signed "made in England". Jewelcraft jewellery was produced in matching ranges that were made to be worn together, and frequently the bracelets, brooches and earrings would be signed, but not the necklaces. It has to be said, the gold-coloured plating on the Jewelcraft pieces has not stood the test of time. Many of the pieces are showing rubbing to the plating, particularly on the back of the panels or on the chain fastening.