Details
AN EXQUISITE DEMANTOID GARNET, DIAMOND AND RUBY LIZARD BROOCH
The circular-cut demantoid garnet and gold undulating lizard enhanced by an old European-cut diamond center stripe and circular-cut ruby eyes, circa 1900
In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, creatures from the insect, reptilian and animal world were reproduced in jewelry forms. Such images as dragonflies, butterflies, bees, spiders, owls, swallows, frogs and lizards proliferated, usually worn in multiples to secure the veil as well as scattered around the bodice. Of all the images portrayed, the lizard was probably the most popular. As a symbol, this creature is an attribute of Logic; however, its use during the Victorian period was due more to its suitability to a jeweled form than to its symbolic nature. Its curvaceous body and tail provided movement within the composition whereas the depiction of other creatures tended to be more static. Lizard brooches were originally set with diamonds and rubies but the discovery of demantoid garnets in the 1860s enabled designers to replicate the actual coloring of the reptile, adding to its beauty and realism.
For illustrations of other lizard brooches, see David Bennett and Daniela Mascetti, "Understanding Jewellery", Woodbridge, 1994, page 223; Diana Scarisbrick, etc., "The Jewelry Design Source Book", London, 1989, page 100; and Vivienne Becker, "Antique and Twentieth Century Jewellery", second edition, Colchester, 1987, plate 39.
The circular-cut demantoid garnet and gold undulating lizard enhanced by an old European-cut diamond center stripe and circular-cut ruby eyes, circa 1900
In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, creatures from the insect, reptilian and animal world were reproduced in jewelry forms. Such images as dragonflies, butterflies, bees, spiders, owls, swallows, frogs and lizards proliferated, usually worn in multiples to secure the veil as well as scattered around the bodice. Of all the images portrayed, the lizard was probably the most popular. As a symbol, this creature is an attribute of Logic; however, its use during the Victorian period was due more to its suitability to a jeweled form than to its symbolic nature. Its curvaceous body and tail provided movement within the composition whereas the depiction of other creatures tended to be more static. Lizard brooches were originally set with diamonds and rubies but the discovery of demantoid garnets in the 1860s enabled designers to replicate the actual coloring of the reptile, adding to its beauty and realism.
For illustrations of other lizard brooches, see David Bennett and Daniela Mascetti, "Understanding Jewellery", Woodbridge, 1994, page 223; Diana Scarisbrick, etc., "The Jewelry Design Source Book", London, 1989, page 100; and Vivienne Becker, "Antique and Twentieth Century Jewellery", second edition, Colchester, 1987, plate 39.