Antique Jeweled Suffragette Earrings World War I Era
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Pre 1920 item# 814244
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These wonderful antique earrings make a powerful feminist statement, while also being extremely elegant. We date the pair to Edwardian times, give or take a few years. A hint of Victorian Art Nouveau is evident in their curvaceous form, but they also have the refined delicacy we associate with Edwardian and transitional styles. As is appropriate for the period, size is restrained (about 3/4" round) and the settings are intricate and highly dimensional. Screw fasteners are present -- popular because piercing was then considered rather barbaric by modern women.
Each earring features a square-cut cabochon resembling emerald or imperial jade, held by tall talon-like prongs, plus two faux pearls and two faceted amethyst pastes. All stones appear original and are in lovely condition, as is the richly textured gilt metalwork. Suffragette jewels often survive in great shape, having been worn only occasionally (at meetings and when marching for the vote). To the Suffragettes' efforts through many decades in the U.K. and U.S., we modern women owe that right, which was finally extended to all American women in 1920 and to all in Great Britain in 1928.
Most likely the earrings were made for export in Bohemia, which for centuries produced the finest simulated gems, as well as ornate and rather fanciful mounts that were widely prized. The area became Czechoslovakia after World War I, but was previously part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
As you know if you collect Suffragette jewelry, the unusual combination of green, purple and white had deep meaning for early feminists. For them, green represented hope, purple signified dignity and white stood for purity. The language we associate with "regard" jewelry applied, too: The "G" of green, "W" of white and "V" of violet comprised an abbreviation for Give Women (the) Vote. All this seems cryptic now, but was clearly understood by everyone in an era when messages were also communicated by which flowers you sent, how you held your fan and which corner of a calling card you folded down, if any. The wealthiest suffragettes mixed amethysts and pearls or diamonds with green stones such as emeralds or peridots, but pretend gems were naturally favored by the majority.
Tucked away and forgotten for decades, Suffragette jewelry began rapidly gaining value when the movie "Iron Jawed Angels" appeared in 2004, revealing what the gals went through (including hunger strikes and beatings). Wearing Suffragette jewels is a great way to show your pride and appreciation and, now that the genre has been rediscovered, they're getting much harder to find. We try our best to maintain a good selection, but demand keeps growing. If these strike your fancy, you'd better not delay.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail erinharris@comcast.net to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Lovely Czech Art Nouveau Faux Moonstone Brooch c1919
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Pre 1920 item# 723605
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The "Czecho" signature on this ultra-feminine antique brooch lets us date it quite precisely to the first years of the Czech Republic (established in 1918). The region was previously known as Bohemia, part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until World War I ended, and Bohemian glass has been prized from medieval times. These gorgeous old pink satin glass moonstones certainly live up to the area's reputation.
Although its dating is technically transitional, falling between the death of King Edward and the period dominated by Art Deco style, the brooch is wholly Victorian in spirit, so must have been crafted immediately after the war. There's not even a hint of Deco styling, so it would have been out of style by the early 1920s.
The lavish gilt setting, as you'll notice, has scrolling openwork at both ends, which would allow the brooch to be worn also as a pendant or even as a choker necklace, if threaded over a ribbon at each end. Its size is impressive -- 2.5 by 2 inches -- and it's in beautifully wearable condition. As you'd expect, there's age-appropriate surface wear to the gilding, especially on the reverse. The fastener is of the old open C type, right for the period. The pinstem would originally have extended beyond the edge of the brooch but, as is common, it was snipped and filed to a new point at some time in the interest of safety. One of the smaller cabochons has a teensy chip, hard to notice without extreme magnification. Provenance of this beauty is a Wisconsin estate.
Interestingly, we happen to have a fabulous pair of pink faux-moonstone earrings that are nearly a perfect match for this. If you're interested in both pieces, please e-mail and we'll work out special pricing.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail erinharris@comcast.net to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Historically Important Czech Cameo Necklace c 1919
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Pre 1920 item# 721675
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In terms of cameo history, here's the "missing link" between the type we think of as 19th century (despite including very early 20th century examples that continued the neoclassical or Art Nouveau style) and those that are decidedly 20th century, featuring the thoroughly modern, short-haired flapper girls of the 1920s and their successors.
Cameos of course mirror our changing standards of beauty and I've never before seen one that so perfectly illustrates the spirit of the transitional period between Edwardian and Art Deco design eras. We can date it quite precisely to that timeframe, because it's signed Czecho. This mark was used for just a few years after creation of the Czech Republic at the end of World War I. The region was previously known as Bohemia, part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The young lady pictured here presents an entirely new vision of elegance. Her hair, while on the long side, is quite a lot shorter than was seen before the war, during which large numbers of women worked for the first time in roles other than domestic service. Hairstyles thus had to become more practical. Her attire also isn't idealized; it's no toga or fairy-like wisp, but quite easily recognizable as an evening gown, accented by an orchid corsage. And her face is that of a real person -- not just pretty, but strong and poised. There are no frou-frous in the background, either. Capping off the design breakthrough of the cameo is that it appears to be of carved coral, complete with natural color variations, but is actually celluloid -- the latest thing!
The frame is also truly exceptional: refined and elaborately worked in the Edwardian manner, but larger and significantly bolder in form -- obviously experimental in the best sense, reflecting openness to new influences and impulses.
Both the cameo and setting are in gorgeous condition. Since celluloid is a notably delicate material, it's clear the jewel has been treated with utmost care (as it well deserves). Gilding remains extremely brilliant, even on the reverse and outer edges. When a chain is separate, not integral, we can't establish firmly that it's original; however, I believe this one is, based on its graceful, intricate structure and the extent of patina present.
In every aspect, this jewel is an absolute WOW. The framed cameo measures about 2 inches by 1.5 inches and the chain is 17.5 inches long. Provenance is a West Coast estate.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail erinharris@comcast.net to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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1870s Austro-Hungarian Renaissance Revival Bracelet
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Pre 1900 item# 721238
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As museums opened across Europe in the 19th century, people flocked to marvel at the treasures of the past -- and then they wanted the look. This led to a series of historical revivals, including Classical, Gothic, Baroque and Rococo, as well Renaissance. The Austrians (who became Austro-Hungarians after the early 1860s) did particularly lovely work in the Renaissance vein, aided by long experience in enamel painting, which was central to the style.
This splendid bracelet features a charming miniature hand-painted on a cabochon of porcelain. In the richly colored scene, an aristocratic couple are shown outdoors on an autumn day, the young lady playing a lute while her dashing beau sings along. Their attire clearly evokes the early Renaissance. Also true to that era are the wristband of finely formed and textured filigree and the painting's lovely frame, which is constructed architecturally in three layers, with intricate surface patterning and a fine dogtooth collet.
The band is an oval, as is characteristic of much early jewelry and really a better fit on the arm than round. It's on the petite side, suited to a smaller than average wrist (up to about 6 inches).
From a West Coast estate, the bracelet is in marvelous condition. The plaque shows no wear; the hinge and clasp work perfectly; and the rest of the metalwork reveals a few tiny dings only under high magnification. Even the gilding is virtually intact, so the bracelet can't have been worn much. Both its dating (1875-1880) and origin are established by the fact that a necklace featuring precisely the same painted motif is a book piece. (See "Popular Jewelry 1840-1940" by Roseann Ettinger.)
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail erinharris@comcast.net to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Exquisite Victorian Gothic Jeweled Enamel Gilt Brooch
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Pre 1900 item# 691621
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As colorful and crusted with ornamentation as a medieval reliquary, this exciting mid-Victorian brooch is obviously hand-made. Probable origin -- based on style, the exotic color scheme and fine Bohemian pastes -- is Austro-Hungarian. Its Byzantine design, which suggests a Maltese Cross, screams Gothic Revival and the details of construction support an 1860s dating. Note the open C clasp and elongated pinstem. The hinge is of a type that began replacing the old T type during the 1850s.
A great deal of work went into fashioning this treasure. Besides elaborate enamel work, it features 19 beautifully faceted stones, all prong set. The large central stone is open at the back, while the other amethyst pastes are foiled.
In superlative condition, this jewel has been treated like the treasure it is. High magnification is required to notice loss of gilding or enamel, except gilt wear on the reverse. Size is approximately 1" round and provenance is a Deep South estate.
I recently saw a new designer brooch similar to this but not half as nice, which was priced at $675, so this is a fantastic deal on an authentic investment-quality antique jewel.
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Gorgeous Antique Suffragette Bracelet for Smaller Wrist
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Pre 1910 item# 685925
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If you're petite, no doubt you've found that most antique bracelets are just too big. They were made roomy to wear over gloves in the 19th and very early 20th centuries, so few are shorter than 7 1/2 inches. This one's just 6 1/2 inches long, counting the clasp -- and it's fabulous!
Fashioned from heavy gilt metal, the bracelet is comprised of four domed plaques intricately detailed with Art Nouveau scrollwork and set with 16 glorious faux gems. Jade-like art glass dominates, featuring rich green hues mottled with white. That these rectangular cabochons vary slightly in color and shape adds to the "real" look and also attests to hand-craftsmanship. Accent stones are deep purple amethyst pastes and glass pearls, still very luminous. All appear original and are in remarkably fine condition. Most likely the necklace was made in Bohemia, which for centuries produced the finest simulated gems, as well as ornate and rather fanciful settings. The area became Czechoslovakia after World War I, but was previously part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The unusual combination of green, purple and white typically signifies that a jewel was first owned by a member of the Suffragette movement. For them, green represented hope, purple signified dignity and white stood for purity. The language we associate with "regard" jewelry applied, too: The "G" of green, "W" of white and "V" of violet comprised an abbreviation for Give Women (the) Vote. That right was finally won for all American women in 1920 and for all in Great Britain in 1928. Thus, although most of the jewelry is Victorian, Edwardian or transitional, some was crafted in the Art Deco era. Forgotten for many years, these jewels have been rapidly gaining value since the star-studded TV movie "Iron Jawed Angels" appeared in 2004, revealing what the gals went through (including hunger strikes and beatings). Wearing Suffragette jewels is a great way to show your pride and appreciation and, now that the genre has been rediscovered, they're getting much more scarce.
This bracelet dates most likely to the 1890s and reached us from an East Coast estate. The reverse shows age-appropriate surface wear around the edges, which reveals a silvery substance under the gilding: pot metal, to judge by the weight. The gilt has aged to bronze color on the front, where it takes high magnification to notice any wear.
The three links joining the plaques are rosier, probably gilt copper, and have an elaborately incised design. Because the clasp isn't patterned and appears to be gilt brass, it's almost surely a replacement. It's been with the bracelet for a very long time, though, based on their matching depth of patina. Of course there may have been a fifth plaque originally, removed at some point by a lady with a dainty wrist. Each plaque measures about 1 1/2 inches long and a little more than an inch wide. Each connecting link adds about 3/8 of an inch, as does the clasp.
Because the clasp can easily be taken off, you could tie ribbons onto each end and wear this also as a choker necklace or a hair ornament.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping (with an equivalent discount on international delivery). Gift-wrap is also free on request. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Richly Jeweled Antique Edwardian Suffragette Earrings
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Pre 1920 item# 685789
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I've never seen this many jewels -- 32 total -- packed onto so little metalwork, which gives these antique earrings a really opulent look. There was certainly no conflict between being a Suffragette and being highly feminine. There are five faceted pastes in each earring, plus 10 faux pearls and a very dimensional heart-shaped leaf of faux opal with loads of fire, that seems to be carved, rather than molded.
I date the pair to the Edwardian era, give or take a few years. A hint of Victorian Art Nouveau remains evident in their curvy starburst or pinwheel form, but they also have the delicacy that we associate with Edwardian and transitional styles. The glass is Bohemian / Czech, based on its quality, and all stones appear original. Settings are gilt brass with screw-backs and it takes magnification to notice surface wear. There's still a lot of shine. Size is about 3/4" in one dimension and 7/8" in the other, but they seem larger because there's so much going on. Although from an estate in Ohio, these seem decidedly European to me -- probably Austro-Hungarian in the last days of Empire, made for export to the Suffragette market in the UK or US.
As you know if you collect Suffragette jewelry, the unusual combination of colors is what we look for. Green stood for hope, purple for dignity and white for purity. The language we associate with "regard" jewelry applied, too: The "G" of green, "W" of white and "V" of violet comprised an abbreviation for Give Women (the) Vote. All this seems cryptic now, but was clearly understood by everyone in an era when messages were also communicated by which flowers you sent, how you held your fan and which corner of a calling card you folded down, if any.
To the Suffragettes' efforts through many decades in the U.K. and U.S., we modern women owe our right to vote. That right was finally extended to all American women in 1920 and to all in Great Britain in 1928. Thus, although most of the jewelry is Victorian, Edwardian or transitional, some was crafted in the Art Deco era.
Forgotten for many years, these jewels have been rapidly gaining value since the star-studded TV movie "Iron Jawed Angels" appeared in 2004, revealing what the gals went through (including hunger strikes and beatings). Wearing Suffragette jewels is a great way to show your pride and appreciation and, now that the genre has been rediscovered, they're getting much harder to find.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Antique Czech Enamel & Pink Moonstone Dangle Earrings
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Pre 1920 item# 652598
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$140
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Last year we found earrings very similar to this pair, but in blue, and they sold in a twinkling. "My dream earrings!" the customer called them. Perhaps these pink beauties will fulfill a dream for you.
Wonderfully feminine and romantic, these can't reasonably be later than 1920, since so much Edwardian and Art Nouveau influence is present in the intricate filigree metalwork (lovely even on the backs). Notice the scrolling shapes and textured details, as well as the curvy flower petal motif enameled in luscious rose to match the heavenly half-orbs of faux-moonstone, which anticipate Art Deco geometry.
Enameled leaves of this type are characteristically Czech, as is the very fine quality of the stones. Despite the absence of marks, we can be virtually certain of their origin -- technically Bohemia, if they were made before Czech independence in 1918, as I believe they were. Most likely they're Edwardian, based on the screw fasteners. Ear-piercing was considered a bit barbaric at that time, particularly by early feminists.
Overall condition is lovely, with a beautiful patina on the gilt brass and only minor flaws evident under high magnification (slight irregularities on the collet settings and a hard-to-notice chip at the edge of one stone, which must have fallen out at some time). The drops will fall about 2 inches below your ears and the earrings measure almost an inch at their widest. Provenance is a Minnesota estate.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift wrap is also free if desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Rare Antique Jugendstil Giardinetto Brooch or Pendant
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Pre 1900 item# 592877
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The giardinetto (little garden) style -- often called giardinetti, the plural -- originated in Italy during the Rococo years of the 18th century and has been revived in other eras when an exceptionally feminine look was prized. Here the artist made the look totally fresh, adapted in the Jugendstil style of late 19th century Eastern Europe.
This elaborate multi-part antique pendant brooch is one of the most delightful Victorian jewels I've seen and, fittingly, it's been treasured. Notice the rose gold gilding, still shining as brightly as new. There's delicate chasing around the bar pin, which has an elongated pinstem, tube hinge and safety-pin clasp reliably dating the piece to the 1880s. Most wonderfully of all, an oval bale beneath the pin suspends a fully dimensional, round basket holding a bouquet of gorgeously enameled flowers and leaves with highly polished accent stones of rose, emerald and coral art glass. Quite sizeable, it measures about 2 1/4 inches tall and 1 1/4 inches at its widest -- large enough to look sensational on a coat or jacket -- and obviously the basket drop can also be worn to great effect on a necklace chain or ribbon.
Without markings, which in this age appeared only on precious metals, one can't be absolutely certain, but all the indications of Austro-Hungarian origin are present -- and, if you love jewelry from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, you know how difficult it is to find now. There was never much, since the Dual Monarchy lasted only from 1867 to 1918 - besides which jewels from this area and period are so special that people seldom let them go. They share the decorative opulence we prize in the shimmering paintings of Klimt, a goldsmith's son who studied at Vienna's celebrated School of Applied Arts. Its students learned to design outstanding arts and crafts products that could be mass-produced for a growing middle class who emulated the aristocracy and had refined tastes. I expect the creator of this elaborate multi-part pendant brooch was trained there.
It isn't surprising when "ballroom" jewels survive in splendid condition, but this charmer was more likely worn by a young lady enjoying the casual pleasures of the Heurigen (wine gardens of the Vienna woods) or riding the Riesenrad, prototype of ferris wheels. Nonetheless, it's as imaginatively and carefully crafted as the adornments of nobility. The underlying metal appears to be a sturdy luxury-weight brass. To see minute losses of gilding and enamel requires extremely high magnification. To the naked eye (at least mine), this jewel is perfect. Its provenance is a North Carolina estate and you'd have to look a long time to find anything comparable.
There's no charge for insured U.S. Priority shipping and gift wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Superb Art Nouveau Gilt & Pink Art Glass Buckle Set
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Pre 1920 item# 588008
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The opulence of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire is captured in this rare buckle dating from Czechoslovakia's earliest years of independence, just after World War I. Because it's marked CZECHOSLOV on the fastener, it can't be older than 1918, but it clearly can't be younger than 1920.
This is the lavish sort of jewel we'd expect to see on one of the beauties Klimt painted in Victorian and Edwardian times: ornately patterned with scrollwork, rope twists and millegrain details, richly gilded (22 karat at least) and wonderfully colorful, thanks to two radiant faux-moonstones of rosy pink art glass.
To judge the quality of this piece, note the gilding on its reverses, untouched by time's patina. A good jeweler could restore the same brilliance to the front surfaces, although they're lovely as they are, and brighten the tiny areas on the collets where gold has worn away. (Alternatively, for a quick fix, you could dab those little spots with gilding paste and seal them with clear nail lacquer.) These are extremely minor flaws, but our price naturally reflects them.
Fastened, the buckle measures 3 inches by 1 1/4, and its brackets will hold a belt or sash up to 3/4 of an inch wide, or wider if gathered.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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