Seaman Schepps: A Century of New York Jewelry Design

by Amanda Vaill, Janet Zapata

Dazzling and celebrity-filled, this survey of the life, times, and works of Seaman Schepps (1881-1972), one of New York's greatest jewelers, is being published to accompany an important exhibition of his stunning designs. A true original, Schepps created eye-popping jewels that fused exotic materials with a sexy style and captured the imagination of trend-setting American women.

An immigrant's son from New York's Lower East Side, Schepps rose to prominence by creating designs that defied all previous ideas of what jewelry should look like. Witty-even outrageous-and wildly flattering, Schepps's jewelry stood for style more than wealth. Featured on the covers of Vogue , Harper's Bazaar , Look , and other magazines, it appealed to an enormous range of clients, from the duchess of Windsor to Andy Warhol. Today, more than 20 years after his death, his work has inspired a legion of new collectors, who seek out vintage rings, bracelets, earrings, compacts, and lipstick cases, and the firm continues to produce splendid pieces based on the original designs. This book, and the exhibition it accompanies, promise to bring Schepps's extraordinary jewelry to a new generation. AUTHOR Amanda Vaill, the granddaughter of Seaman Schepps, is the author of Everybody Was So Young , a biography of Gerald and Sara Murphy that was a finalist for the National Book Critics' Circle Award. Janet Zapata is a historian and curator of decorative arts and jewelry and the author of numerous books and articles. David Behl is a leading photographer of jewelry whose many books include Abrams' Bejeweled .

204 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2004

About the author

Amanda Vaill's PRIDE AND PLEASURE: THE SCHUYLER SISTERS IN AN AGE OF REVOLUTION, a nominee for the National Book Critics Circle Award, was published in October 2025. She is the author of three previous biographies — HOTEL FLORIDA, SOMEWHERE, and the best-selling EVERYBODY WAS SO YOUNG, a finalist for the NBCC — and has co-authored, contributed to, or edited a number of other books in the field of arts and culture. She is an Emmy-nominated screenwriter and her journalism and criticism have appeared in many publications, including the New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, Town and Country, and New York. A past fellow of the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, NYU’s Center for Ballet and the Arts, and the Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at the New York Public Library, she lives in New York City.