The THEN & NOW collection by Rebecca Rau Jewels debuts a series that showcases a fusion of ancient artefacts and modern adornment, previewed at M.S. Rau in New Orleans. This will be followed by an exclusive NYC Jewellery Week collection launch in November.
Antique and jewellery dealer Rebecca Rau of the eponymous brand, Rebecca Rau Jewels, is a 4th-generation jeweller who believes in celebrating human history, craftsmanship, and the legacy of spirituality within bodily adornment. Rau believes her work dissolves the distance between museum and wearer, transforming artefacts once kept behind glass into intimate, living works of art. Through her pieces, Rau reminds us that the impulse to create and ornament the body is as timeless as humanity itself.
The debut of her inaugural THEN & NOW collection, a striking new series that bridges the worlds of antiquity and contemporary design. Drawing upon genuine historical artefacts spanning 1200 BC to 1880 AD, each piece integrates ancient treasures with modern gemstones, precious metals, and pearls. Every jewel is a celebration of human history, reinterpreted through Rebecca Rau’s distinct eye and reverence for craftsmanship.
Founded by designer and fourth-generation antique dealer Rebecca Rau, the brand is rooted in her family’s legacy at M.S. Rau, the renowned New Orleans gallery known for its world-class art collection, rare antiques, and jewellery. Having grown up among relics of history, Rebecca developed an instinct for beauty that feels both scholarly and intuitive. After earning her master’s degree from Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London, she travelled extensively across Europe and Asia, acquiring rare jewels and objets d’art, while cultivating her curatorial sensibilities. With THEN & NOW, she translates that lifelong fascination with the past into wearable works of art that transcend time.
“I’m drawn to the tension between resilience and permanence. THEN & NOW bridges centuries through shared human impulses: creation, adornment, and ritual. These pieces remind us that the concept of beauty is ever-evolving, but the handmade objects continue to have an immediacy and gravitas, particularly when they’ve survived many centuries,” says Rau.
Among the jewels, the Reimagined Jasper necklace (above) lies at the heart of the collection. This Renaissance-inspired statement centres on a 1st-2nd Century AD cut brown-jasper fragment, framed by unheated orange zircons and Umbalite garnets. The five Tahitian grey pearls lend quiet depth, while the pendant hangs from an 18-karat yellow gold French “book” chain, circa 1865.
The Glowing Glass Necklace (above) offers a luminous counterpart; its rare Gothic pendant of early glass and high-karat gold radiates with a light that feels celestial. Dating back to 14th-century Europe, it glows with the softened brilliance of time, suspended from a modern 18-karat paperclip chain that transforms the piece into the present. It feels like a secret passed through centuries, rediscovered and made personal again.
The Criss-Cross Necklace (above), inspired by its ancient Bactrian amulet that dating to circa 1200-800 BC, captures the mystery of vanished civilisations. Its four-spoked votive wheel, symbolising the sun and celestial motion, once carried sacred meaning across the Greco-Bactrian world. Rau preserved its vivid green patina, surrounding it with cushion-cut pink spinel, trillion-cut rubellite tourmaline, and step-cut pink sapphire, anchored by a baroque South Sea pearl. It suspends from a Victorian lariat chain, transforming a relic of devotion into a modern jewel.
Finally, the Protectrice necklace (above) reimagines a 13th-century Spanish gilt-bronze harness, once perhaps part of a noblewoman’s girdle or a horse’s ceremonial armour. Adorned with an 11.68-carat no-heat pink tourmaline and Tahitian baroque pearls, the piece carries echoes of chivalry and ceremony. Its burnished gold surface bears witness to centuries of touch and ritual, now reborn as an intimate emblem of protection and grace. The pendant is suspended from an 18-karat yellow gold Victorian chain.
THEN & NOW is an act of preservation through reinvention. Each one-of-a-kind piece holds a conversation between what was and what might be, between the craftsman of another age and the artist of today. Rebecca Rau’s work reminds us that jewellery, at its most profound, is a vessel for memory, story, and the enduring pursuit of beauty.
The collection debuted at a preview in New Orleans at M.S. Rau on 24-25 October. It will later travel to New York City Jewelry Week (NYCJW) for an exclusive launch event on November 20th, where attendees will have the opportunity to view the pieces in person and meet the designer. Following that presentation, select jewels from the collection will be available for private viewing by appointment at the Rebecca Rau studio in New York or at M.S. Rau in New Orleans.