Category: Fashion

People nowadays look for unique and interesting jewelry articles to wear as fashion accessories. Religious and patriotic themes are particularly admired by a lot of people since they reflect their pure love and devotion to their religion or country. Among beautiful and exceptional religious jewelry, orthodox crosses and Celtic protection pendants are particularly noteworthy. These pendants are available in tungsten, stainless steel and sterling silver. People who have Irish or Scottish roots love to wear these jewelry articles. These items express Celtic culture and heritage in a beautiful way. Most of these religious articles are available in affordable price ranges.

Orthodox crosses are available in many styles and materials. Eastern and Patriarchal crosses are somewhat different from the traditional cross which is a symbol of Christianity. These crosses are also termed as the Byzantine crosses. The Russian cross is another variant on the traditional cross with a slightly different shape. All these types of orthodox crosses can now be located online. The upper bar of these crosses represents Jesus of Nazareth and the additional lower bar, which is not present in traditional designs, symbolizes hell according to some believers.

Among various religious jewelry articles, Greek orthodox crosses and Greek baptismal crosses are also very popular. These cross pendants are available in pure 18k gold with diamonds and gemstones. Some of these articles are quite expensive because of their high quality and other striking features. If you are looking for affordable crosses, you can buy silver pendants which are not very expensive.

Baptismal crosses are symbols of the Holy Trinity. In addition to these, Phos Zoe orthodox crosses are also quite unique and interesting. Symbols like alpha, omega, sigma and eta are used on these kinds of crosses which represent different concepts. Greek crosses are loved by many people across the globe because of their exclusive symbolism.

Another exceptional Religious jewelry article is the Celtic protection pendant which can be found in a number of interesting designs. Celtic sword of protection, dragon vine Celtic knot, Celtic shield of protection, love & unity, and dragon energy are popular themes and are well-liked in all parts of the world. These pendants were worn by ancient priests and religious men who lived in the Western Europe, Britain and Ireland. These beautiful and unique religious pendants feature enameled leaves, beautiful crystals and heart-shaped lovely gemstones. Many people like to wear these pendants as fashionable as well as religious jewelry.

Celtic protection pendants in Religious jewelry are mostly made of pewter which is a metal alloy consisting of copper, tin and antimony. Handcrafted pewter jewelry is gaining in popularity nowadays because of its uniqueness and allure. Sometimes pure pewter is oxidized to give it a lovely silver-grayish look. Women particularly like this type of jewelry as it is individual and can be matched with any kind of dress. Classic and contemporary religious articles in this category are truly wonderful. They include pendants, lapel pins, rings, charms, bracelets, and earrings. Pewter is a preferred choice of a lot of people out there because it is lead-free and non-allergic.

Apparently Zimbabwe’s plan to sell off the conflict diamonds from their Marange diamond fields is simply not going to come through as long as the HRW (Human Rights Watch) has any say in the matter. The HRW specifically instructed the leading diamond jewelry providers in the world to keep their distance from any diamonds from Zimbabwe. Specifically, Arvind Ganesan, Director of the Business & Human Rights Division at HRW, released an official warning regarding a full on embargo of Zimbabwe diamonds due to their many violations of serious human rights conditions. According to Arvind Ganesan, Zimbabwean diamonds are conflict diamonds in every sense of the term, and as such the HRW is requesting that jewelry retailers and jewelry consumers boycott these diamonds until the human rights infringements reach their end. In fact, Arvind Ganesan wrote a letter asking as much from leaders in the diamond jewelry industry, such as Cartier, Tiffany’s, and Zale.

Arvind Ganesan has turned to the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme as well as the World Diamond Council in an attempt to expand the current definition of blood diamonds to contain diamonds acquired by governments in conflict and not only diamonds by rebel groups. In his letter, the Director of the Human Rights Watch requested that major diamond jewelry retailers issue public statements regarding refusal to purchase Zimbabwean diamonds. Such acts on the parts of the major players in the diamond retail community will surely have some significant long-term effects on diamond production from the Murowa diamond mine, as well as the River Ranch diamond mine, which are thought to be channels for the sale of diamonds from the Marange fields in Zimbabwe.

In the letter, Arvind Ganesan also appeals to the powerful members of the diamond industry to use their influence on the Kimberley Process to ensure that Zimbabwe is fully suspended from the group up to the point when they actually meet basic human rights standards. As per reports from HRW, such human rights infringements as killing, smuggling, and child labor have been going on until just this October and there are no signs of any considerable changes since then. These diamonds have been smuggled to neighboring countries mixing with diamonds from other nations and basically causing a situation where conflict diamonds are traded worldwide.

Hence, it is up to the jewelry retailers to be responsible enough to make sure that they do not vend such conflict diamonds to their jewelry consumers. As diamond consumers are becoming increasingly knowledgeable about conflict diamonds and requesting certifications as to the origin of their diamonds, it was only a matter of time before Zimbabwean diamonds became too risky to be associated with.

The problem is that generally speaking, jewelry providers can’t just boycott their diamond jewelry items, but then again, nobody wants to be linked to conflict diamonds either. It looks like we’ll just have to wait and see how the major members of the diamond jewelry community intend to comply with the demands of the Human Rights Watch.