Vintage Articulated Fish Pendant

VERY BREEZY presents: This pendant is crafted from a genuine auger seashell, and mounted with a gold-toned metal bail. It was sourced in Italy, and I love to imagine the adventures i...

This piece is so special and so rare: it dates to the Victorian era, more specifically the 1860s, and was likely made in Britain. It is crafted from vulcanite and features a teardrop shape with a high relief bunch of grapes in intricate detail, surrounded by a border of carved beads, strung on a fine black ribbon, to be worn as choker. (I love it strung on the Victorian Jet Choker pictured, which is also available in my shop.) The vulcanite has this truly stunning, relatively matte finish, with a rich warm glow— it's just so unique and unlike any other material. What is vulcanite? It is made by combining the sap of the Euphorbia or Ficus trees from Malaysia, with sulphur. It was originally invented in 1843 by Thomas Hancock. His timing just happened to be spot-on: black had long been considered essential to mourning jewelry and mourning dress, but thanks to Queen Victoria's extended 40 years of grieving (for her husband, Prince Albert), from about 1860-1890, black was considered a highly fashionable color, and began to be worn outside mourning dress. During this period, vulcanite became a very fashionable material for jewelry, and it loaned objects that gothic, romantic, dramatic black cast that Victorians just loved. Victorian mourning jewelry is rife with grape motifs; for one, grapes were a symbols of Christ (as wine is the blood of Christ). On Victorian grave markers, a cluster of grapes typically means that the deceased was of mature years. Victorians are well known for using flowers and botanicals as a means of communication. Wild grapes, according to The Language of Flowers published in 1913, are symbols of Charity, a favorite Victorian theme. NOTE: The Victorian Hair Mourning...

There is something so magical to me about vintage and antique cameos: the way the portraits are rendered in such incredible detail seems to tell a person's mystery. This cameo is carved from genuine shell with such impressive precision, and it's set in solid 18k gold. It is both a pendant, and a brooch; the pin back is not visible when it's worn as a pendant, and I love the way the bail dangles down and disappears when it's worn as brooch, making it truly two pieces in one. It was likely made in the 1930s, but it's also possible that the cameo itself was made even earlier, and the brooch fastener was later added around the 1930s or 1940s. This cameo depicts a Spanish woman, wearing a mantilla comb...

This antique mother of pearl Gobbo charm is a powerful talisman; if you're not familiar with Gobbo charms, they are thought to offer the same protection and good luck as the ubiquito...

Introducing our exquisite Large Heart Shaped Pendant Necklace, a symbol of love and devotion delicately crafted to captivate hearts. This stunning necklace features a dainty heart-sh...

A unique pendant featuring a detailed cameo design. Set in a gold frame, the piece showcases a white figure playing a flute against a vibrant blue background. The cameo is accented w...

A stunning, fine and impressive, large 48.34 carat aquamarine and 0.70cttw diamond, platinum and 18 karat yellow gold necklace; part of our diverse aquamarine jewelry collections. T...

A stunning, fine and impressive 9.10 carat amethyst, pearl and 0.20 carat diamond, 14 karat yellow gold and silver set necklace; part of our antique amethyst jewelry collections. This stunning, fine and impressive antique amethyst necklace has been crafted in 14k yellow gold with silver settings. The necklace is embellished with an impressive feature claw set heart-shaped amethyst, surmounted with paired leaf and bud design incorporating three Old European round cut diamonds. The feature amethyst setting supports a linear drop, incorporating a further paired leaf design accented with diamonds, in addition to an impressive claw set oval faceted cut amethyst to the terminal. The apex of the drop bears a further claw set Old European round cut diamond, anchoring a swagged supporting platinum chain and terminating with an impressive pearl. This exceptional antique amethyst pendant is suspended from a platinum chain via two integrated ring loops to the upper border of the heart setting. The chain secures to the reverse with a conventional spring-loaded bolt clasp. This stunning antique necklace has been independently tested using state of the art technology (Niton XL2 Analyzer) and verified as 14 karat gold and silver with a platinum chain. This impressive amethyst heart necklace...