This is a wonderfully versatile “Egyptian Revival” scarab pendant – just small enough that it can be worn as a sizeable charm or pendant, and reversible with a design on each side. The front has a gently-domed scarab design which on closer inspection is actually made up of two cartouche flanked by cobras, with the eyes set in a lotus flower. The back of the pendant is concave and filled with four columns of genuine (rather than “artistic”) Egyptian hieroglyphs matching hieroglyphs from Tutankhamun’s cartouche.

The scarab has an “authentic” rather than purely-decorative look and the silver has a beautiful patina, suggesting it dates to the late 1920s or early 1930s – a few years after Tutankhamun’s tomb was discovered in 1923. From the marks it is also genuinely Egyptian, made from a lower grade of silver than 925 (sterling). It has not been tested but colour and patina suggest it is 900 purity silver. Though fairly small it is thick and heavy.

Size: 1.9 cm high and 1.4 cm wide (0.75″ by 0.6″) not including the fixed ring.

Weight: 5 grams (0.18 oz).

Marks: Stamped on the fixed ring with a tiny assay mark which appears to be the pre-1946 Egyptian assay mark, used on 700, 800 and 900 purity silver. I belive this pendant is 900 purity, and certainly no less than 800 purity.

This is a pretty example of Italian filigree work – a light and lacy vintage butterfly brooch in 800 purity silver (a common Italian silver standard) with crisp silver wires and contrasting vermeil on the body and wing tips. There is also a slight wash of pink on the centre and lower wing segments. It has a “corkscrew” textured body, ball-tipped antenna and lots of dimension with the top wings set well above the lower.

Although it looks quite fragile, it is actually quite thick and rigid (see side view below). The back of the brooch is entirely vermeil, fitted with a secure rollover safety clasp. From the style and marks, it dates to the 1950s or early 1960s.

Size: 3 cm wide x 1.8 cm high x (1.2″ x 0.7″)

Marks: “800” for the Italian silver standard of 800/1000, with an indistinct maker’s/city mark.

Condition: Excellent vintage condition.

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This vintage necklace delivers some 1950s glitz in a single strand, making it more wearable than most 1950s necklaces. It is a warm-toned necklace of glass amber crystals and filigree beads, interspersed with fluted bead caps and rope-twist spacer beads.

The amber crystals have a half-bead coating of aurora borealis providing interesting glints of purple, peacock blues and gold, and reduce in size towards the back of the necklace. The filigree beads are a gold-tone metal, with a glistening blackberry texture.

The necklace is fitted with a hook and crystal extender chain so it can be worn collar or choker length.

Dimensions: The length is adjustable from 38 cm (15″) to 43 cm (17″). The largest bead at centre is 1.3 cm (0.5″).

Marks: None

Condition: This vintage 1950s necklace is in good to very good vintage condition. Some gold-tone bead caps and spacers have dulled, mainly towards the back of the necklace, but the filigree and crystal beads are in excellent condition. It has been securely re-strung at some point with nylon.

Text and images © Catminter.com

This is a simple vintage 1950s necklace of facetted black glass beads with a silver coating for added sparkle, similar in effect to a dark facetted hematite. Measuring 0.5 cm (0.2″) in diameter, the beads are a good size – small enough for day, but noticeable enough for evening wear too. The necklace is collar length, with a brass bolt-ring clasp.

Dimensions: 42 cm long (16.5″), including the clasp.

Marks: None

Condition: Very good vintage condition.

This is a bright and cheerful – and very wearable – vintage Czech necklace of randomly-arranged multi-coloured glass beads, often referred to as “harlequin” beads. They are finished with fluted gold-tone bead caps, interspersed with black seed beads, also glass. Being handmade in the 1930s, possibly 1920s, the beads have slight variations in size and shape, and some original flaws – striping at the equators, a few specks of embedded grit, dimples and so on – typical in this type of bead.

It is a choker length necklace, securely strung with a basic brass bolt-ring clasp.

Dimensions: 40 cm long, including clasp (15.75″)

Marks: Unmarked

Condition: This vintage Czech necklace is in very good vintage condition with some original flaws as noted above, but no damage. The gold-tone beads caps are bright, with only slight signs of wear.

This is a large vintage flower brooch dating to the 1930s, of silver-tone metal and marcasites. It is quite dimensional with long curling leaves surrounding a two-tier flower. Except for the stem it is completely covered in pave-set marcasites.

The brooch is fitted with a rollover safety clasp and from the position of the pin is most likely meant to be worn horizontally (as above), perhaps at the centre of the neckline, but it sits nicely when worn vertically too.

Dimensions: This is a large vintage brooch – 6.5 cm (2.6″) high and 4 cm (1.6″) wide.

Marks: None

Condition: The brooch is in very good vintage condition with virtually no wear. The clasp works well, the silver is bright and there are no missing marcasites.

Description

This is a jazzy Art Deco necklace in warm tones of brown, beige and russet, with a touch of lemon. The beads are a mix of shapes and sizes, including fluted rounds, lozenges and “very Deco” zig-zag discs. Although they have a slightly plastic look the beads are actually all glass – they are cold to the touch and “chink”. The necklace has a simple brass bolt-ring clasp and has been restrung at some time (the cord looks quite clean).

Dimensions

The largest round beads – flanking the centre zig-zag section – are 1.5 cm (0.6″) in diameter. Overall length of this vintage necklace is 48.5 cm (19″).

Condition

This Art Deco necklace is in very good vintage condition.  The only issue is that the beads appear to have been made with a fairly basic moulding process – there are some small air-bubble holes and mould lines. However, these flaws are not noticeable on general viewing and the beads are not damaged at all.

Description

This is a lovely vintage rhinestone dangle brooch, dating to the 1950s – perfect to wear at the centre of a neckline or high up on a shoulder.

Although the brooch does not have a lot of stones compared to many 1950s brooches, it has plenty of sparkle. The stones are all a good size – the smallest is 0.5 cm – and high quality. There is also an interesting mix of stones, of various sizes and colours.

The dangle is a large (2.5 cm) unfoiled smokey cognac-coloured stone in an open back setting. A matching stone is set in the centre of the brooch section, surrounded by foil-backed amber and pale lemon rhinestones, with an aurora borealis stone set at the centre top and bottom. All the stones are prong-set.

The setting is a slightly matte gold tone, and the brooch is fitted with an unusually dainty safety clasp – just 2 cm (3/4″) long.

Dimensions

This vintage brooch is 4 cm wide and 6 cm high, including the dangle (1.5″ by 2.5″).

Marks

No maker’s or other marks.

Condition

This brooch is in very good vintage condition, with some slight (not noticeable) wear to the goldtone, but no damage. The only issue is that the two smaller amber rhinestones (bottom left and right) are not as bright as the rest, but as they match it is possible that they never were as bright as the rest, and they do not spoil the look of this lovely brooch.

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This is a large and lovely 1930s vintage Czech brooch featuring a circle of multi-colour rhinestones around an open centre filled with wire-stemmed flowers. The flowers have rhinestone centres and petals enamelled in various pearly pastels, with ridge details in the underlying metal.

The setting is a slightly-matte goldtone with a textured edge adding interest to the sideview. The rhinestones are prong set and the brooch is fitted with a north-south pin to prevent this sizeable brooch from toppling forward. It is 5 cm (2″) across and 0.8 cm (0.3″) deep, marked Czecho Slovakia on a cartouche.

Dimensions: 5 cm (2″) across with a depth of about 0.8 cm (0/3″).

Marks: Marked “CZECHO SLOVAKIA” on a cartouche on the reverse.

Condition: The brooch is in very good vintage condition with no missing stones. There are some slight age-related nicks in the enamel and the rhinestones set in the flowers are somewhat dulled, but the rest are very bright and the gold-tone is in good overall condition.

Text and images © Catminter.com

This is a wonderful vintage Art Deco brooch with plenty of personality, featuring a bright and cheerful daisy centred on a bow. The design is lifted out of the ordinary by a highly-reflective chrome plating, reflecting also the Art Deco love affair with “Machine Age” materials. The mirror-like chrome creates a wonderful play of light over the dimensional details. It has deep ribbon loops, plump little two-tier petals and a domed flower centre.

The chrome plating is heavy and the underlying metal is thick and rigid. The plating on the the back is less reflective but will easily brighten with a clean. The brooch is fitted with a period rollover safety clasp with a gold-tone pin stem.

Size: 5 cm wide x 2.5 cm high x 1.7 cm deep including clasp hardware (2″ x 1″ x 0.7″ )

Marks: No maker’s or other marks.

Condition: Excellent vintage condition with only the slightest amount of edge wear, picked up by the camera but not at all visible to the naked eye except on very close inspection. Please note that this brooch is not suitable for very light fabrics, due to it’s depth and weight (see side view below).

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