The Napier “N” Trademark Tag

The Napier “N” trademark tag is one of Napier’s most misunderstood trademark tags. This misconception has fostered sales for jewelry that is not Napier, and sometimes that mistake has garnered sellers hundreds of dollars for jewelry that is, in fact, NOT Napier. The “N” trademark, first used in 1923, was owned by Napier from 1924 through 1964. However, during this period of ownership, the company rarely used the mark on jewelry, preferring to use it for vanity items (see page 967 of The Napier Co.: Defining 20th Century American Costume Jewelry). For its 1955 promotion with the Fontana Sisters, the company also used the mark on the back of a Napier-Fontana trademark tag (see page 970). Later, in the 1990s, the company used an “N” hang tag in conjunction with the trademark tag (see page 953), although during this time, the company did not own the trademark rights to the “N” mark. The trademark tag shown here, repeatedly associated with Napier, is by “NENA” jewelry. I will post later regarding the trademark “A” as we have a similar situation with wrongful attribution and The Napier Co.