19th Century Jewels: the Continued Reign of Queen Victoria

Known for its bold and creative designs, jewellery from the Victorian era is selling better than ever in McTear’s jewellery auctions. Many of the popular lots to these dedicated three-weekly sales are items of jewellery dating to the 19^th century. The star motif was an extremely popular one and features in items in lots 511 and 750 on the sale on 25 April.

All of the items in these two group lots are set in warm, yellow gold as was popular at the time. This popularity persisted until the use of platinum was introduced in the early twentieth century and the discovery of its advantages as a material became clear. Enamel as a decorative feature is another detail of note in Victorian jewellery, particularly in mourning items. These usually have panels of black enamel, seen in the ring of lot 750. This enamel is to the bezel which opens to reveal a section for woven hair, another feature of mourning jewellery

To view the full sale results click here >>

If you have items of Victorian jewellery then contact sarah@mctears.co.uk for a free valuation.

McTear’s sells more jewellery than any other traditional auction house in the dedicated jewellery auctions that take place twice monthly, run concurrently live online on a platform that attracts six million visitors annually from over 120 countries worldwide.

Written by Sarah Cotter