This week I thought I would share some of my early 1900s pieces with you. I am not 100% sure of the age of some of these but based on the little knowledge I have most would be from around 1900-1930s.
This lovely old bar brooch may even be older. Note the simple glass stone in the centre. Many earlier brooches were quite small and this can sometimes be used in estimating their age. Another feature to many earlier brooches was a simple C clasp. The pin simply pushed up under a curved piece of metal.
This example I found on google images and the image came from
here. I hope Aunt Judy will forgive me for borrowing it. I did try to take photos of my own brooch backs but was unable to get a clear picture.
Most of the brooches I am sharing today have this older style clasp.
This beautiful leafy brooch is quite large measuring approx 31/2 inches across. Simply designed but beautifully made it looks like it is made from brass.
I think this brooch is from the 1920s or 1930s but it also could well be earlier. Note the use of various coloured glass. Generally speaking pieces with multi coloured diamantes were better quality and more expensive than those with just one colour.
These four bar brooches are early 1900s, the red stoned one possibly earlier. They are small, the brooch at the top with the tiny clear diamantes barely measures an inch wide. The blue glass bow brooch not much bigger. If you look closely at the red stoned brooch you can see the C clasp on the back and how simple it is compared to modern jewellery clasps. The bar brooch at the bottom is a bit of a mystery to me. The size and clasp suggests it is a similar age to the other brooches and yet it looks almost like new. A reproduction perhaps or simply a brooch not worn much? The colours in the stones are reflections from the flash, the stones are just white and not coated with aurora borealis. (they look a little like they are in the photo but are not)
These two lovelies look well made and measure approx 2 inches wide. (The red glass diamante one is just a touch larger) They have beautiful detail pressed into the metal and have been well cared for. If you look closely you may see a little wear on the pin of the second brooch. I think these two have a touch of the art deco period about them.
1920s -1930s? A similar pressed metal design that I think is just lovely.
Something a little different. I think this little circle/wreath brooch may possibly be of the same era. It is tiny, barely an inch across. It has been well made and the safety chain suggests a better quality piece of jewellery.
I'm undecided if this little bar brooch is genuinely vintage or a reproduction. I purchased it as a vintage piece and it has an older style C clasp. The back of better quality vintage pieces were often as beautifully presented as the fronts. This little brooch (about and inch and half across) has a beautiful filigree back which I attempted to photograph but my little camera isn't the best for fine shots.
I hope this gives you a little idea of how pretty some pieces are on their backs.
I LOVE this bar brooch. It is beautifully made and features multi coloured glass stones and seed pearls. (I have no idea if these are really tiny pearls or just beads) Definately one of my better pieces.
Finally an old Bakelite brooch of an amish pony and carriage.
Hope you enjoyed a peek back into time this week. It amazes me that they were able to make such exquisitely beautiful items that have lasted for so long. Remember this is all costume jewellery, not fine jewellery. It is a surprise that so much of it has survived intact. A measure of how well things were made back then?
wishing you sunshine in your shadows
Helen
