Romantic Antique Brooch With Turquoises & Pearls In Gold, Great Britain c. 1905

A sunny day in the south of England. Festively dressed ladies in long dresses and hats are accompanied by elegant gentlemen and cheer on a bridal couple. The tables in the extensive park of the manor house are festively laid, the staff are excited and fragrant flowers line the paths. They have brought gifts, the guests who have traveled from all over to celebrate this day. And as we know, the best presents come in small packages. One such gift could have been this brooch, a gift of love or a wedding present. Why? The piece itself explains. We see a suspended heart in a wreath decorated with ribbons. The golden brooch is adorned with fine natural pearls and sky-blue turquoise, which are reminiscent of forget-me-nots and take on their eloquent meaning. The brooch therefore uses a symbolic language of love. Brooches with this romantic motif were very fashionable in Great Britain at the turn of the century. Morals were strict, but the longing for love was great. A glance at a randomly selected jeweler's catalog of the time shows the abundance and variation of brooches with bows or hearts (see last illustration). We discovered this brooch in London. The 15-carat gold alloy also confirms the place and time of origin, as this particular alloy was only used in England until 1932. Illustration from the catalogue of Saunders & Shepherd Ltd, Holburn Circus, London, 1903/04, illustrated in Peter Hinks (ed.): Viktorianischer Schmuck, Hildesheim/Zurich/New York 1996, p. 142.

Estimate:$1,099.29

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