So, listen: I really like jewelry. Bling is inherently apotropaic and has been since before we were sentient protohumans. The history of our species’ relationship with jewelry is so fucking interesting. I’m no anthropologist or historian, but I can tell you a whole fucking lot about trade beads, Tibetan dzi, Thai baht gold, Viking festoons, the history of the nazar, etc. I like to buy and make jewelry. It’s a whole ass side passion of mine. Studying it gives me hella joy.
A few years ago I found something super interesting in an antique store not too far from where I currently live. A small silver pin or brooch, just a little bigger than a quarter. Openwork repousse style, with filligree and a stylized leaf, really detailed for how small it is. No hallmark on the back other than a STERLING stamp (not 925, the whole word) and an old-style hinged stick pin with that rotating locking clasp. And a hook, empty. The mystery of it totally just grabbed me and I bought it that day.
And every so often I try for several hours at a time to figure out exactly what it is, to no avail. It’s been at least two or more years and I still haven’t managed to identify it fully. The lack of a maker’s mark, the empty hook, everything about it eludes me.
Was it a convertible pendant with a missing original chain, a brooch with a missing dangling charm, a watch pin with a missing watch fob, or a chatelaine with a missing…everything??
This sounds like a fascinating obsession! Would you be willing to share a photo of the pin?
Here it is, and a picture of the back with a quarter for scale. Note the plain hallmark, high-quality soldering and the distinctive style of hook. This pin was cast or stamped by hand, and the flash at the openwork finished by hand as well.
Ignore the jump rings and dangling gem; I put them there as placeholders until I find a proper chatelaine chain. (Do you see what I mean by that similarity to the Jugendstil/Skonvirke style of brooch in this orientation?)
I still go by the theory that this was a watch pin or chatelaine from England or France, but it could very well be simply decorative and not made for function. If this were made to be a convertible pendant/brooch combo, which was very common at the time, then this pin should actually be viewed upside-down.
I’d super fucking appreciate any help in identifying this pin. No matter how hard I try, I can’t narrow down the date of manufacture or country of origin. Even just telling me what type of leaf this is would be a huge help.
spacemaverick archive 