Posted 10 years ago
Caigan
(16 items)
I purchased this brooch at an estate sale late last summer- I had never seen anything quite like it- with 4 spaces for photos... the middle portion looks like my great grandfather's pocket watch cover, the edges have (to me) an almost Egyptian design... and there is a 4 leaf clover in the middle... NICE! :)
I've posted this a few other places trying to learn more about where it is from, who may have designed it... and if there is some significance to the number of photos it can hold, other than the obvious "she had a lot of children?".
It was suggested that this may have been a mourning locket, possibly for someone who had lost twins.. with space for 2 locks of hair and 2 photos... not sure why, but that just doesnt seem to fit for me.
Regardless, it's one of my favorite items EVER purchased, and the one that I know the least about!
Have any of you seen something like this before?
***I have NOT had the metal tested, but will probably do so in the near future
*** NO markings anywhere on the brooch
Take care-
Caigan
This is very cool!
Irish?
Thought that as well because of the shamrock- and I just realized how appropriate that I posted on St. Patrick's day (or just as it ended!). There are just so many different styles going on with it.. at least to my amateur eyes.
I love it too... Welcome to CW... Would love to see more.
Lockets with four compartments were not that uncommon in Victorian jewelry and some later styles. To me, this brooch is a mix of so many elements from different periods/styles, that I'd think it a revival or fantasy piece made not that long ago.