Charming late Victorian antique French gold pendant locket

Antique jewelry object group: locket and pendant

Country of origin: France

Style: Victorian - Victorian decorative arts refers to the style of decorative arts during the Victorian era. The Victorian era is known for its eclectic revival and interpretation of historic styles and the introduction of cross-cultural influences from the middle east and Asia in furniture, fittings, and Interior decoration. Victorian design is widely viewed as having indulged in a regrettable excess of ornament. The Arts and Crafts movement, the aesthetic movement, Anglo-Japanese style, and Art Nouveau style have their beginnings in the late Victorian era.
See also: Victorian or more info on styles

Style specifics: The Victorian period can roughly be divided into 3 distinct periods; the Romantic (1837 - 1860), Grand (1861 - 1885), and Late or Aesthetic Period (1880 - 1901). We consider this to be of the Late or Aesthetic Period.

The jewelry of the late Victorian period once again returned to romanticism with more delicate and whimsical motifs such as stars, crescent moons, reptiles and insects. The discovery of the diamond mines in South Africa led to the use of mine, rose and cushion cut diamond stones.

Period: ca. 1880
(events and facts in 1880)

Source of inspiration: Mother Nature (see also: flower symbolism)

Material: 18K red gold with some yellow gold details
(more info on precious metals)

Extra information: Locket - A locket is a pendant that opens to reveal a space used for storing a photograph or other small item such as a curl of hair. Lockets are usually given to loved ones on holidays such as Valentine's Day and occasions such as Christenings, weddings and, most noticeably during the Victorian Age, funerals.

Lockets are generally worn on chains around the neck and often hold a photo of the person who gave the locket, or they could form part of a charm bracelet. They come in many shapes such as ovals, hearts and circles and are usually made of precious metals such as gold and silver befitting their status as decorative jewellery.

Lockets usually hold only one or two photographs, but some specially made lockets can hold up to eight. Some lockets have been fashioned as 'spinner' lockets, where the bail that attaches to the necklace chain is attached but not fixed to the locket itself which is free to spin, this was a common style in the Victorian Age.

Keepsake lockets can also be made with a glass pane at the front so that what is inside can be seen without opening the locket. These lockets are generally used for items like locks of hair which could fall out and become lost if the locket was repeatedly opened, whereas photograph lockets are generally enclosed on all sides and the photographs are secured by pieces of clear plastic.

Another kind of locket is/was made in a filigree style with a small cushion in the centre to which a few drops of perfume should be added, perfume lockets were popular in eras when personal hygiene was restricted and sweet smelling perfume was used to mask the odour of a person or their companions. (from: Wikipedia)

Precious stones: Three red strass (also called paste)
(more info on precious stones)

Birthstones: Ruby is the birthstone (or month stone) for July.
(more info on birthstones)

Hallmarks: The French control mark for 18K gold representing an eagle's head that was in use in France from about 1838.
(more info on hallmarks)

Condition: excellent condition
(more info on our condition scale)

Dimensions: height 2.95 cm (1.16 inch), width 2.52 cm (0.99 inch)

Weight: 3.60 gram (2.31 dwt)

Reference Nº: 10343-0035

Copyright photography: Adin, fine antique jewelry

See also our:
lockets, pendants, all floral jewelry, red gold jewelry, bi-color jewelry, jewelry with ruby, jewelry with strass/paste, latest acquisitions,
antique jewelry, estate jewelry, vintage jewelry or modern jewelry

Jewelry with birthstones (or month stones) for:
January - February - March - April - May - June - July
August - September - October - November or December.


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