Antique Brass Snake Wrapped Rootwood Candlestick Pair
Located in Forney, TX
Overall outstanding examples -- Candlestick candle sticks candle stand pricket candelabra candelabrum table lamp Gothic revival Victorian Orientalist figural snake sculpture statue ...
Brass, Bronze
19th Century Ironstone Mason Snake Handle Pitcher Imari Pattern
By Elkington Mason & Co.
Located in Austin, TX
19th Century ironstone snake handle Pitcher Imari pattern signed Mason.
Ceramic
19th Century Ironstone Mason Snake Handle Pitcher Imari Pattern
By Elkington Mason & Co.
Located in Austin, TX
19th Century ironstone snake handle Pitcher Imari pattern signed Mason.
Ceramic
19th Century Ironstone Mason Snake Handle Pitcher Imari Pattern
By Elkington Mason & Co.
Located in Austin, TX
19th Century ironstone snake handle Pitcher Imari pattern signed Mason.
Ceramic
Antique Circa 1890 Enamel Diamond Snake Brooch, 38.4g Gold, Blue
Located in North Hollywood, CA
This gorgeous Enamel snake brooch is in almost perfect condition and comes in its original box. Seldom do you find this gorgeous robins egg blue enamel circa 1890 and in near perfect...
Diamond, Enamel
19th Century Ironstone Mason Snake Handle Pitcher Imari Pattern
By Elkington Mason & Co.
Located in Austin, TX
19th Century ironstone snake handle Pitcher Imari pattern signed Mason.
Ceramic
English Sterling Jester & Ouroboros Snake Sugar Tongs, Birmingham 1887
By Joseph Willmore
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Victorian Sterling Silver Jester & Ouroboros Snake Sugar Tongs, Birmingham 1887, by Joseph Willmore An extraordinary example of Victorian novelty silver, this figural pair of sterli...
Sterling Silver
Amazing 19th Century Sapphire Silver Gold Snake Bracelet
Located in Riverdale, NY
Amazing Antique Snake Bracelet from the mid to late 19th Century. The head and tail of the snake are composed of beautifully detailed, chased 18k gold with large cabochon sapphires f...
Sapphire, 18k Gold, Silver, 14k Gold
19th Century Ironstone Mason Snake Handle Pitcher Imari Pattern
By Elkington Mason & Co.
Located in Austin, TX
19th Century ironstone snake handle Pitcher Imari pattern signed Mason.
Ceramic
Antique Blue Enamel, Diamond, Ruby and Gold Snake Bangle, Circa 1850
Located in London, GB
In Victorian symbolism the coiled snake represented eternal love.
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, Enamel
Enamel And Seed Pearl Snake Necklace Mid-19Th Century
Located in Firenze, IT
Period: 19th century Length: 41,9 cm Weight: approx. 28.5 gr This particular necklace from the mid-19th century is made of 18-carat gold and is characterized by a chain articulated ...
Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Enamel
Antique 18K Gold, Ruby and Diamond Double Snake Ring
Located in New York, NY
This late Victorian 18K gold double snake ring, set with a diamond and a ruby, was created in England in 1892.
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
19th Century Kashmiri Enameled Gilt Brass Cup with Snake Handles.
Located in Montreal, QC
This large and highly decorative cup is supported on a domed base. The stem is formed as two intertwined snakes, which terminate as handles, the snakeheads peeping over the rim. It i...
Brass
19th Century Majolica Palissy Snake & Lizard Candelstick Thomas Sergent
By Thomas Victor Sergent
Located in Austin, TX
French Palissy candlestick signed Thomas Sergent, circa 1880. Trompe l'oeil wood with leaves decorated with snake and lizard. Thomas Victor Sergent was an active member of the School...
Ceramic, Majolica
Antique Double Snake Bracelet Silver Niello Silver Gilt Hair Eternal Friendship
Located in Munich, Bavaria
This rare and unusual bracelet is designed as two snake heads that hold a wheel. The knobs of the wheel have been covered with rose gold gilding. The center of the wheel is decorate...
Silver, Niello
Antique French Pearl Ruby Diamond Gold Convertible Snake Bracelet Necklace 1860
Located in Chicago, IL
This exceptional quality Victorian era articulated snake bracelet / necklace is formed of sections, each engraved to imitate snake scales.
Diamond, Pearl, Ruby, Gold
American Anhinga - Snake Bird /// John James Audubon Ornithology Natural History
By John James Audubon
Located in Saint Augustine, FL
Artist: John James Audubon (American, 1785-1851) Title: "American Anhinga - Snake Bird" (Plate 420, No. 84) Portfolio: The Birds of America (First Royal Octavo Edition) Year: 1840-18...
Watercolor, Lithograph
Antique Triple Snake Ring with Ruby, Diamond, and Sapphire in 15ct Gold
Located in Lewisburg, PA
A richly symbolic and highly collectible example of Victorian serpent jewelry.
Diamond, Ruby, Sapphire, 15k Gold
Anthony's Temptation - 9ct Gold and Garnet Snake Curb Necklace or Wrap Bracelet
Located in Midhurst, GB
1960s 9ct gold curb chain with a Victorian 9ct gold, garnet and sapphire snake motif clasp.
Garnet, Gold
Vintage Sapphire Ruby 18 Karat Yellow Gold Snake Triple Coil Flexible Bracelet
Located in London, GB
The Victorians associated the snake motif with eternal love.
Sapphire, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Antique Turquoise, Diamond and Pearl Snake Bracelet
Located in New York, NY
A beloved form of the Victorian era, this colorful, slinky snake combines refined antique workmanship with modern appeal.
Diamond, Pearl, Turquoise, Gold
Vintage 9K/ 14K Yellow Gold Snake Necklace with Rubies and Diamond.
Located in San Francisco, CA
Crafted in 14K Yellow Gold, with a 9K Yellow Gold Chain, this antique snake necklace captivates with it's expertly detailed textural scales, and unique antique chain. There are 2 Rou...
Diamond, Ruby, Yellow Gold
Antique Natural Fancy Color Diamond Snake Necklace
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Unique Victorian Yellow Gold Snake Necklace with Fourteen Natural Fancy Color Diamonds.
Diamond, Pink Diamond, Yellow Gold
Antique Serpent Snake Bracelet Diamond Crown Ruby Eyes 14 Karat Gold circa 1840
Located in New York, NY
And snake jewelry is all the rage today. In the Victorian era the snake was the symbol of eternal love.
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Antique French 18 Karat Gold Diamond and Sapphire Double Snake Bracelet Bangle
Located in New York, NY
Antique French 18 Karat Gold Rose Cut Diamond and Sapphire Double Snake Serpent Bracelet Bangle Though it may come as a surprise to some, the snake is one of history’s most enduring...
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
Art Nouveau Austria Scheid RareMark Pave Zircon Silver Snake Brooch c1910
By Georg Adam Scheid
Located in Chicago, IL
Given the early handcrafted safety clasp from the Victorian Edwardian period, Scheid likely made this shortly after he retired in 1911, which enabled his two sons to manage the busin...
Aquamarine, Diamond, Sapphire, Zircon, Silver, Sterling Silver
A George Jones Majolica 'Palissy Vase' with Snake Handle, English, ca. 1870
By George Jones
Located in Banner Elk, NC
A Highly Important George Jones Majolica 'Palissy Vase,' molded as an obovoid-form ewer, the rustic bark ground with molded green-glazed leaves and ferns, molded and applied with thr...
Majolica
Antique French 18K Yellow Gold & Pear Cut Garnet Serpent / Snake Brooch, c1850’s
Located in MELBOURNE, AU
This intricate piece of jewellery is an antique brooch of French provenance, performed in a shape of a snake Associated with transformation, rebirth, renewal, and fertility, as w...
Garnet, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold
$5,950Sale Price|30% Off
Antique 18K Gold & Enamel Snake Brooch, Emerald & Pearl, France, Circa 1880
Located in Chatham, CA
Antique Victorian/Napoleon III 18K yellow gold serpent/snake brooch - fine and elaborate chased gold finish to the body with chain and tassel details - hand made featuring blue ename...
Emerald, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Enamel
A Palissy Ware Majolica Jardinière, Bird's Nest and Snake, School of Paris, 1880
By Thomas Sargent
Located in Banner Elk, NC
A Palissy Ware Majolica Jardinière, modelled as a rectangular rustic wooden trough with simulated wooden staves and branches, with ferns and green-glazed foliage, bullrushes, and toa...
Majolica
Antique Rose-Cut Diamond Ruby 14 Karat Gold Snake Bangle Bracelet, 19th Century
Located in Rotterdam, NL
This beautiful antique creation of the Victorian era is a serpent bracelet dating from the mid-to-late 19th century - the snake is artfully created in yellow gold and set with ruby e...
Diamond, Ruby, 14k Gold, Gold
A Thomas Sergent Palissy Ware Majolica Wall Pocket with Snake, French, ca. 1875
By Thomas Sargent
Located in Banner Elk, NC
A Highly Rare Thomas Sergent Palissy Ware Majolica Trompe-l'oeil Wall Pocket, naturalistically molded as an oak tree, with green-glazed leaves and acorns, a fledgling blackbird in ne...
Majolica
Early 20th Century Austrian Cold-Painted Bronze "Curled Snake" by Franz Bergman
By Franz Bergmann
Located in London, GB
A very fine and unusual early 20th Century cold painted Austrian bronze study of a curled snake on the move with superb naturalistic colour and excellent hand chased surface detail, ...
Bronze
18 Karat Yellow Gold Diamond Snake Ring, Circa 1913
Located in London, GB
The Victorians associated the snake motif with eternal love.
Diamond, Gold, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold
Antique Set of Six Snake Buttons Marble 9 karat Gold Gilt Metal Good Luck
Located in Munich, Bavaria
This set of six unusual buttons was created in the 1880s in England. The buttons are carved out of different coloured marble. Each button is decorated with a coiled snake. The snake’...
18k Gold, Gilt Metal, Gold, 9k Gold, Base Metal
Antique Franz Bergman Vienna Cold Painted Bronze Cobra Snake Statue Watch Holder
By Franz Bergmann
Located in West Sussex, Pulborough
We are delighted to offer for sale this stunning original Circa 1900 Austrian Vienna cold paint bronze Statue / Watch holder by the wonder that is Franz Bergman. Fully stamped to ...
Bronze
$807Sale Price|20% Off
Antique Snake, Hammer and Stars Brooch, 9k Gold and Silver, Diamond, Ruby, Pearl
Located in NEWARK, GB
A beautiful and rare antique snake and hammer brooch. Victorian design at its very finest this brooch incorporates so many beautiful materials and so much symbolism in a small but m...
Diamond, Pearl, Ruby, Turquoise, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold, Silver
Art Nouveau Snake Serpent Goddess Woman Pendant Necklace Antique 14 Karat Gold
Located in New York, NY
This is a very rare antique Art Nouveau - Victorian Goddess Woman and Snake Serpent Pendant Necklace depicting two snakes or serpents wrapped around the goddess woman.
Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Antique English gold scaled long chain
Located in New York, NY
A Victorian gold snake longuard chain comprised of layered scales with a swivel hook, in 15k.
15k Gold
A Victorian emerald and gold snake necklace
Located in London, GB
To the Victorians, snakes symbolised enduring love. This was particularly used in conjunction with the image of the snake biting its own tail, symbolising a continous circle and thus...
Diamond, Emerald, Garnet, 15k Gold, 18k Gold
Mid-Victorian Emerald, Pearl and Diamond Pendant
Located in London, GB
This ornate and striking piece is suspended from a lovely Victorian snake chain. This antique pendant/necklace is in very good condition for its age.
Diamond, Emerald, Pearl, Natural Pearl, Gold, Yellow Gold
Victorian Ruby and Pearl Snake Stick-Pin
Located in London, GB
A Victorian ruby and pearl snake stick-pin, the coiled snake with three faceted rubies set on the forehead, two cabochon-set ruby eyes, suspending a pearl from the mouth, the finely ...
Pearl, Ruby
Impressive Early Victorian Blue Enamel Snake Bracelet
Located in London, GB
An impressive early Victorian blue enamel, diamond and gold snake bracelet, the realistically carved head with open mouth, the eyebrows and top of head with rose and old mine-cut dia...
Diamond, Enamel
Natural Pearl Necklace with Diamond Set Snakes
Located in London, GB
A Victorian natural pearl an diamond necklace, consisting of three graduating from the centre diamond set snakes, each coiled snake set with old-cut diamonds with cabochon ruby-set e...
Diamond, Natural Pearl, 18k Gold, Silver
The reign of Queen Victoria encapsulates a quickly evolving period of history — and jewelry styles were no exception. No single period has seen such a diverse group of jewelry attributed to it than the Victorian era. Today, there is a vast collection of authentic antique Victorian jewelry and watches on 1stDibs.
Victorian jewelry is named after Queen Victoria, whose reign lasted from 1837 to 1901, making her the second longest-ruling monarch. (She was surpassed by Queen Elizabeth II in 2015.) During this time, different styles of fashion and jewelry came and went. Thanks to our fascination with royalty and swoon-worthy melodramas like Netflix’s The Crown — which is rife with evocative fashion, jewelry and interiors — and the 2017 feature film Victoria & Abdul, we are all familiar with her story. After the death of Victoria’s father and three childless uncles, she ascended to the throne at age 18. In 1840, Queen Victoria married the love of her life, her first cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
Queen Victoria loved serpentine jewels, and she had even more power to shape trends than Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle do today. The British monarch’s best-known piece in this mold is the gold coiled-snake engagement ring she received from Prince Albert — the sinuous reptile was considered a symbol of everlasting love.
The Queen's 63-year reign has been divided by historians into the Romantic period, the early happy years, circa 1837–60; the Grand period, marked by the deaths of the Queen’s mother and husband, circa 1860–80; and the late Victorian or Aesthetic period, which lasted from about 1880 until 1901 and ushered in the Belle Époque. Queen Victoria wore her heart on her sleeve, and her fashion and jewelry reflected her emotions.
Romantic period jewelry, which featured common decorative motifs and was embellished with seed pearls, coral and turquoise, was a celebration of the young monarch’s love. Everything changed with the death of Prince Albert, and the Grand period is most often associated with mourning jewelry. Jewelry was smaller, lighter and more dainty during the late Victorian period. During this era, diamonds came into fashion, and semiprecious gems such as amethysts and opals became prevalent, too. Using gemstones for their natural beauty and not their worth was something that jewelers of the era felt passionate about, and this ideology would really become relevant in Art Nouveau jewelry.
Find a collection of authentic antique Victorian jewelry — from rings, necklaces and brooches to a range of other accessories — on 1stDibs.
Gold is the feel-good metal, the serotonin of jewelry. Wear vintage and antique gold necklaces, watches, gold bracelets or gold rings and you feel happy, you feel dressed, you feel, well, yourself.
Gold, especially yellow gold, with its rich patina and ancient pedigree going back thousands of years, is the steady standby, the well-mannered metal of choice. Any discussion of this lustrous metal comes down to a basic truth: Gold is elementary, my dear. Gold jewelry that couples the mystique of the metal with superb design and craftsmanship achieves the status of an enduring classic. Many luxury houses have given us some of our most treasured and lasting examples of gold jewelry over the years.
Since its founding, in 1837, Tiffany & Co. has built its reputation on its company jewelry as well as its coterie of boutique designers, which has included Jean Schlumberger, Donald Claflin, Angela Cummings and Elsa Peretti. There are numerous gold Tiffany classics worth citing. Some are accented with gemstones, but all stand out for their design and the workmanship displayed.
For the woman who prefers a minimalist look, the Tiffany & Co. twist bangle (thin, slightly ovoid) is stylishly simple. For Cummings devotees, signature pieces feature hard stone inlay, such as her pairs of gold ear clips inlaid with black jade (a play on the classic Chanel black and tan), or bangles whose design recalls ocean waves, with undulating lines of lapis lazuli and mother-of-pearl. And just about any design by the great Jean Schlumberger is by definition a classic.
Even had he eschewed stones and diamonds, Southern-born David Webb would be hailed for the vast arsenal of heavy gold jewelry he designed. Gold, usually hammered or textured in some manner, defines great David Webb jewelry. The self-taught jeweler made very au courant pieces while drawing inspiration from ancient and out-of-the-way sources — East meets West in the commanding gold necklaces made by Webb in the early 1970s. The same could be said for his endlessly varied gold cuffs.
In Europe, many houses have given us gold jewelry that sets the highest standard for excellence, pieces that were highly sought after when they were made and continue to be so.
Numerous designs from Cartier are homages to gold. There are the classic Trinity rings, necklaces and bracelets — trifectas of yellow, white and rose gold. As a testament to the power of love, consider the endurance of the Cartier Love bracelet.
Aldo Cipullo, Cartier’s top in-house designer from the late 1960s into the early ’70s, made history in 1969 with the Love bracelet. Cipullo frequently said that the Love bracelet was born of a sleepless night contemplating a love affair gone wrong and his realization that “the only remnants he possessed of the romance were memories.” He distilled the urge to keep a loved one close into a slim 18-karat gold bangle.
BVLGARI and its coin jewelry, gemme nummarie, hit the jackpot when the line launched in the 1960s. The line has been perennially popular. BVLGARI coin jewelry features ancient Greek and Roman coins embedded in striking gold mounts, usually hung on thick link necklaces of varying lengths. In the 1970s, BVLGARI introduced the Tubogas line, most often made in yellow gold. The Tubogas watches are classics, and then there is the Serpenti, the house's outstanding snake-themed watches and bracelets.
A collection called Monete that incorporated the gold coins is one of several iconic BVLGARI lines that debuted in the 1970s and ’80s, catering to a new generation of empowered women. Just as designers like Halston and Yves Saint Laurent were popularizing fuss-free ready-to-wear fashion for women on the go, BVLGARI offered jewels to be lived in.
Since Van Cleef & Arpels opened its Place Vendôme doors in 1906, collection after collection of jewelry classics have enchanted the public. As predominantly expressed in a honeycomb of gold, there is the Ludo watch and accessories, circa the 1920s, and the golden Zip necklace, 1951, whose ingenious transformation of the traditional zipper was originally proposed by the Duchess of Windsor. Van Cleef's Alhambra, with its Moroccan motif, was introduced in 1968 and from the start its popularity pivoted on royalty and celebrity status. It remains one of VCA’s most popular and collected styles.
Mention must be made of Buccellati, whose name is synonymous with gold so finely spun that it suggests tapestry. The house’s many gold bracelets, typically embellished with a few or many diamonds, signified taste and distinction and are always in favor on the secondary market. Other important mid-20th-century houses known for their gold-themed jewelry include Hermès and Ilias Lalaounis.
Find a stunning collection of vintage and antique gold jewelry on 1stDibs.
If jewelry could talk, we know this piece would have good stories.
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Learn about these antique jewelry styles, then choose a design that speaks to you.
Representing everlasting love, serpentine often appear on fashionable gems from the era on Queen Victoria.
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Enriching rooms with layers of visual interest is key to the New York– and Toronto-based decorator’s signature style.
Will your beloved be enchanted by an Edwardian ring or a trendy Art Deco piece? We clue you into period styles and tips for finding the perfect ring.