Jewellery words that begin with the letter C
Continuing our jewellery terminology glossary. Here are the jewellery terms beginning with C.
Cabochon - A stone cut into a curved or smooth round shape with a flat surface and not faceted.
Cairngorm - Brownish/yellow variety of a smoky quartz.
Calcite - Harder than Halcite semi precious stone and has a glassy sheen that can come in blue, clear or orange.
Cameo - A shell or other material with a raised relief profiled theme. It can be carved or manufactured.
Cape Emerald/ Cape Chrysolite - An attractive milky green mineral called Prehnite.
Carat - The unit of weight of a precious stone or metal.
Carbuncle - A garnet cut as a cabochon not faceted.
Cat's Eye or Cats Eye - Varieties of chrysoberyl that allow light to reflect.
Carnelian/Cornelian - Rich orange semi precious stone. May have some banding.
Celestite/Celestine - Soft grey-blue mineral that has been used in making ceramics and glass. .
Chakra - Spinning vortex of subtle energy.
Chalcedony - Grey - blue and sky blue quartz with micro crystalline varieties of quartz.
Chalk - Soft white porous rock
Champleve - Enamel work where metal is engraved and then filled with enamel.
Charm - Usually a small attachment to a chain bracelet. Now charms can be attached to necklaces and other pieces of jewellery
Chasing - Surface texturing of metal by hammers and punches.
Chatelaine - Pin or claps with hanging chains for items of continual use, such as keys, watch, scissors, etc.
Chaton - The central ornament of a ring.
Chi - Chinese term for life energy.
Chrysoberyl - Species of semi precious stones to which Cat's Eyes and Alexandrites belong to.
Chrysolite - Pale yellowish green stone. A variety of Peridot.
Chrysoprase - Light green semi precious quartz.
Cinnabar - Soft and porous rock in a rich red colour. Beware of fake Cinnabar from China in recent years.
Citrine Quartz - Uncommon with warm tones of yellow sunlight. Today it is produced from a more common quartz amethyst which turns a golden yellow when heated.
Claw Set/Coronet Setting - Term used for setting a stone where the claws project from the base of its setting. A Coronet Setting is always round, whilst a Claw Setting might be square.
Clear Quartz - Also known as Rock Crystal.
Clear Topaz - Clear - blue stone that can look like Sapphires.
Clear Zircon - Hard stone that imitates a diamond.
Clip - Mechanism used in earrings and scarf clips to hold in place.
Cloisonne - In enamel work where metal separate the coloured enamel filling.
Cocktail rings - In 1925 heavy elaborate rings of unusual design were given this name because they were suitable to be worn to a cocktail party.
Collet Setting - Method of setting in which a precious stone is held in place by wrapping it in a rounded band of metal.
Collier - Wide statement necklace which encircles the neck from throat to chin
Copper - Chemical reaction between other minerals and solutions forms copper.
Coral - Formed from the skeletal remains of small sea creatures. Red is the most valuable. Now rare due to its over harvesting.
Corbeille - Gifts made by a bridegroom to his bride.
Cordonniere - Girdle twisted to resemble cord. It is tied in the front with long ends hanging down.
Cornelian - Clear red Chalcedony stone.
Corundum - Species of semi precious stone of which Ruby and Sapphire belong. Next down from a diamond in hardness.
Costume Jewellery - Fashion ornaments in non precious materials - also known as fashion jewellery.
Crackled Quartz - Also called Star-Burst Quartz. Clear quartz is heated and cooled to give a cracked effect. Dye is absorbed to give a very sparkly appearance.
Creole Earrings - Hoop style that has a thicker base than top.
Crystal - Mineral with regular planes and faces reflecting a regular internal structure. It can also refer to glass as in Swarovski Crystal. Where the glass is highly reflective.
Cubic Zirconia - See clear Zircon.
Curb - The most common pattern for gold chain bracelets.
Updated May 2022
Clip backs to clip on earrings.
Chasing - Surface texturing of metal by hammers and punches.
Chatelaine - Pin or claps with hanging chains for items of continual use, such as keys, watch, scissors, etc.
Chaton - The central ornament of a ring.
Chi - Chinese term for life energy.
Chrysoberyl - Species of semi precious stones to which Cat's Eyes and Alexandrites belong to.
Chrysolite - Pale yellowish green stone. A variety of Peridot.
Chrysoprase - Light green semi precious quartz.
Cinnabar - Soft and porous rock in a rich red colour. Beware of fake Cinnabar from China in recent years.
Citrine Quartz - Uncommon with warm tones of yellow sunlight. Today it is produced from a more common quartz amethyst which turns a golden yellow when heated.
Claw Set/Coronet Setting - Term used for setting a stone where the claws project from the base of its setting. A Coronet Setting is always round, whilst a Claw Setting might be square.
Clear Quartz - Also known as Rock Crystal.
Clear Topaz - Clear - blue stone that can look like Sapphires.
Clear Zircon - Hard stone that imitates a diamond.
Clip - Mechanism used in earrings and scarf clips to hold in place.
Cloisonne - In enamel work where metal separate the coloured enamel filling.
Cocktail rings - In 1925 heavy elaborate rings of unusual design were given this name because they were suitable to be worn to a cocktail party.
Collet Setting - Method of setting in which a precious stone is held in place by wrapping it in a rounded band of metal.
Collier - Wide statement necklace which encircles the neck from throat to chin
Copper - Chemical reaction between other minerals and solutions forms copper.
Coral - Formed from the skeletal remains of small sea creatures. Red is the most valuable. Now rare due to its over harvesting.
Corbeille - Gifts made by a bridegroom to his bride.
Cordonniere - Girdle twisted to resemble cord. It is tied in the front with long ends hanging down.
Cornelian - Clear red Chalcedony stone.
Corundum - Species of semi precious stone of which Ruby and Sapphire belong. Next down from a diamond in hardness.
Costume Jewellery - Fashion ornaments in non precious materials - also known as fashion jewellery.
Crackled Quartz - Also called Star-Burst Quartz. Clear quartz is heated and cooled to give a cracked effect. Dye is absorbed to give a very sparkly appearance.
Creole Earrings - Hoop style that has a thicker base than top.
Crystal - Mineral with regular planes and faces reflecting a regular internal structure. It can also refer to glass as in Swarovski Crystal. Where the glass is highly reflective.
Cubic Zirconia - See clear Zircon.
Curb - The most common pattern for gold chain bracelets.
Updated May 2022
Turquoise coloured stones called cabochon in this Czech brooch.
