Your jewelry has its ancestors from 75,000 years ago in the form of perforated sea snail shells found at the Blombos Cave in South Africa. You can surmise, too, that protection measures to keep jewelry have also been around for that long except that nowadays, surveillance technology like CCTV systems is more commonly employed.



Lest you think that CCTV systems are expensive, these are actually excellent investments towards protecting the family jewels. (No, not those jewels. The ones made of precious stones and metals)

Install CCTV Systems

Well, not really many CCTV systems. Just one functional system that best addresses your needs will do. You should assess your requirements for the job before you even go inquiring of vendors selling surveillance equipment and CCTV systems. Have a heart of gold and make the job easier for them.

When you have installed the home surveillance system, you should keep it open. By this, you have to regularly maintain and inspect the equipment for integrity at all times. This is because jewelry theft is a crime of opportunity that knows no time of day, no friendships, and no professional relationships. After all, one can always tuck in the pocket, hock in the pawnshop, and make a buck very easily with jewelry!

In the event that your jewelry is stolen, your surveillance system can help you piece the story and catch the thief. It will definitely help in your sleuthing skills.

Install Home Security

CCTV systems are only effective when you have home security that deters thieves from breaking into your home and into your jewelry case. You need to:

- Install secure locks on all doors and windows and make sure these are locked at all times, most especially when you leave the house. As secure as your neighborhood might be in the past, there is always a first time for a break-in and you can't let that first time be in your house.

- Ensure that your house looks lived-in by mowing the lawn, picking up the newspaper and mail, and even get one of those new-fangled gadgets that make it look like the TV is on and somebody is home.

- Last and most important, keep your jewelry safe! Duh. If possible, invest in an immobile safe deposit box cleverly hidden behind a painting. Or you can always make a hole in the wall! Or better yet, keep your most valuable family jewels in a bank safe deposit box.

Sure, every home is susceptible to break-ins. Even homes in the platinum triangle of Bel Air, Holmby Hills and Beverly Hills, which you can surmise employ sophisticated security systems with their owners' wads of cash, have suffered a rash of cat burglaries! But with your personal vigilance, you can reduce the incidence of break-ins to protect your life, your property and your family jewels (both of the heirloom and the genetic kinds)

If your jewelry appraiser believes your family jewels need to be insured, then follow his advice. It can cost you, yes, but when your jewels do get stolen or lost, you will be able to replace them. Just pray that it is not the fourth generation heirloom diamond and gold ring that has been the engagement ring for the eldest sons in the family. Now, you are in trouble.