Antique Pearl & Enamelled Gold Brooch, British, c. 1900

Of all nations, the British were particularly fond of jewelry with hidden messages. This brooch is not only a decorative and precious piece of jewelry made of gold and fine natural pearls - it also signaled to everyone in Victorian times that its wearer had recently entered into marriage or would soon do so. The motif of the brooch can be understood as a small word puzzle. A moon appears as a narrow, curved crescent in the shimmer of pearls, while the flowers set here, partly covered with iridescent translucent enamel, stand for the sweetness of love and the honey that busy bees could gather from it. Together, they symbolize the word "honeymoon", the common term for a honeymoon in the English-speaking world. So the brooch may once have been the groom's gift to his bride, as gifts of jewelry were customary at weddings. The brooch is made of 15-carat gold, which indicates that it was made in Great Britain. It is well preserved and is still suitable today as a romantic gift, as a hidden message between two lovers whose meaning is only revealed to outsiders at second glance. It is supplied in an antique case from a Berlin jeweler.

Estimate:£1,410.02

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