Johnny Depp is once again back in the public eye following his defamation trial with Amber Heard, and even made an appearance on the red carpet at Cannes Film Festival this week.
However, his jewellery choices remain unchanged. It’s still solid silver rings, chunky watches and necklaces galore. Indeed, it’s rare that the Hollywood titan is spotted without his signature mix of offbeat jewellery.
The skull ring is a staple in Depp’s jewellery box and has been glistening across the actor’s fingers for over three decades. He first ordered a plain silver skull ring from celebrity jeweller Albrizio in the early 1990s. “Jim Jarmusch, Iggy Pop, Jonathan Shaw and Johnny Depp all came in and bought the same ring together,” says Alfred Albrizio, a 3rd generation jeweller. “Iggy Pop ended up putting it on the cover of his Skull Ring album.”At this time, the foursome of friends had established the so-called Death is Certain Club, and the rings denoted membership to the friendship group.
Depp’s Death is Certain ring features a boxy skull with red gems for the eyes and three clear stones in the forehead. The piece is made of silver with a touch of gold that highlights the three (Depp’s favourite number) and the Brave symbols flanking the skull. A question mark sign rests on the opposite side of the ring representing The Brave, a movie directed by Depp in 1997. Depp would later go on to purchase two more skull rings from Albrizio, one with diamonds and rubies and the other in plain silver which he wore on each hand.
Considered one of the actor’s best-known roles, Depp even had a hand in creating the character of Jack Sparrow from the much-loved Pirates of the Caribbean series, lending some of the rings from his jewellery collection to the fictional pirate. A skull ring embellished with an emerald stone, which Sparrow wears on his index finger, is the property of the actor. You can also see him flaunting the piece on the 1989 Rolling Stone magazine cover. Another of Sparrow’s rings is a gold piece adorned with onyx, three smaller gemstones, and a flower design. The actor even suggested a story for this jewel – the pirate allegedly scrounged it from the widow of a Spanish sailor.
Other rings were designed for the character of Sparrow himself, including an amethyst ring which the pirate wears on his left index finger. It was made in the 17th century and purchased from an antique store specifically for the movie. Unfortunately, the original piece was later stolen from the set, so the producers recreated an exact copy of the ring for the second instalment of the series.
On top of these rings, Depp has a few pieces showcasing the characters he played. Naturally, he has a pirate ring, rumoured to be made by the Oscar and Emmy-winning makeup artist Joel Harlow, who worked alongside the actor on the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Aside from Harlow, Depp has several other jeweller friends, one of them being Neil Lane, who also designed a few rings for the Pirates franchise. Later, he would also create another skull ring for Depp’s collection. This time, the skull was cast in gold with amethysts in its eyes and even more purple stones on the band.
While Depp’s signature look involves plenty of rings, he also has a penchant for watches. Take for example Depp’s Corum Bubble Skull 47 watch in sleek stainless steel. Powered by an automatic movement with a 72-hour power reserve, the watch comes complete with a characteristic 8mm domed sapphire crystal glass and a Mexican style skull in white Superluminova for an attention grabbing combination.
The Ballon Bleu de Cartier watch in stainless steel is also one of Depp’s go-to timepieces. Complete with a silvered guilloché dial with blued-steel sword-shaped hands and a signature sapphire cabochon winding mechanism, the watch adds a glistening touch of elegance to Depp’s rebel rocker style.
One of the most influential style icons in menswear, Depp’s quirky taste in jewellery elevates his signature look from rugged and artsy to the perfect balance of refinement.
Like this? Read about the symbolic hidden meaning behind Johnny Depp’s skull jewellery
