MAKER'S MARK UNIDENTIFIED C.C., BIRMINGHAM, 1875 AND POSSIBLY BIRMINGHAM, 19TH CENTURY

Up to the eighteenth century the rattle was not only regarded as a child's toy. As an amulet, a silver or gold rattle would protect the child from all kinds of danger. People believed that the sound of the bells and whistle scared the evil spirits. Rattles often are mounted with pieces of semiprecious stones, such as rock-crystal, red coral and agate. These stones were accredited with the power to evert evil. Some early rattles are mounted with a wolve's or wild boar's tooth, which would give the child the animal's power. (B.W.G. Wttewaall, Nederlands Klein Zilver 1650-1880, Amsterdam 1987, pp. 281-285)