The fourth popular motif in Victorian era Essex crystal jewelry was the nautical theme, particularly that of pennants which denoted specific yacht clubs or even spelled out words using the nautical alphabet. Boats and ships themselves were also represented. This pair of flag (I’ll use the word “flag” here even though some of them…
Having spent some time among the animals and birds, why don’t we stroll through an Essex crystal flower garden? This charming Victorian piece is actually a parasol handle! Made of gold and accented with diamonds, it is mounted so as to display six different flowers. We can see a daisy, an iris, and…
Birds were another favorite subject for reverse carved Essex crystal jewelry. The Victorian pieces in particular portrayed game birds, hunting being a popular sport of the times (as seen in the Essex crystal Animals post.) Although not all of the examples below are antique, all are undoubtedly attractive! …
One of the most unique types of Victorian era jewelry must surely be the genre known as “Essex crystal”. The name does not refer to a brand, nor to geography (like Vauxhall glass jewelry), but to a mistaken identity! All Essex crystal jewelry began life as a piece of clear rock crystal (not glass, but…
When I first encountered operculum jewelry, my reaction was ‘What the heck is that?’ It certainly didn’t resemble anything I’d ever seen before; for one thing, they looked almost eerily like “eyes” of some sort. But were they manmade or natural? They are indeed natural; in fact, they are part of a special type of…
