General Information:
- Total Carat Weight: 0.12 ctw
- Precious Metal Weight: Approx. 1.00 to 1.10 dwt
- Precious Metal Material: 14k yellow gold
- Dimensions: 58.5 mm length overall x 14.5 mm wide x 6.4 mm deep; 52.5 mm pin length
- Weight: A nicely weighty 1.72 grams
- Markings: Unmarked but tests for 14k yellow gold
- Era: Estimated c. 1870-1890s likely of European (western) origin
- Buyer Notes: This pin is an extraordinary example of the artistry of antique stick pins. Its enameling is intact, the stones are of excellent clarity and sparkle, and the modeling of the metalwork is in wonderful, precise condition. Its detail is very unusual, making it truly one of a kind on the market. Stick pins are becoming more and more rare, and aside from being perfectly wearable as delicate lapel brooches, are prime candidates for many kinds of fine jewelry conversions, including rings, earrings, pendants, and charms. Please do not hesitate to reach out via Instagram for a video of this item, and see many more photos of this item on our website (both accounts linked below).
Specifications:
- Center Stone Type: Diamond
- Center Stone Count: Three (3)
- Center Stone Carat Weight: 0.10 ct
- Center Stone Dimensions: 2.0-2.2 mm ea.
- Center Stone Shape: Old Mine Cut
- Center Stone Color: a very white H-I
- Center Stone Clarity: SI1 (eye clean)
- Side Stone Type: Diamond
- Side Stone Count: Six (6)
- Side Stone Carat Weight: 0.02 ct
- Side Stone Dimensions: 1.5-1.6 mm
- Side Stone Shape: Antique Rose Cut
- Side Stone Color: H-I (may appear as having very light gray undertone due to flat backing of faceting style)
- Side Stone Clarity: SI1 (eye clean)
The Story:
Designed and created by hand during the last decades of the 19th century, this elaborate 14k yellow gold stick pin features an extraordinarily intricate composition of a cross intersecting a coronet. The cross is enameled, and upon close inspection, appears to be enameled in a modified guilloché fashion, wherein an impressed metalwork design on the surface of the gold ‘peeks through’ and dictates the visual effect of the overlying semi-translucent enameling. Thus under magnification, there appears to be a subtle linear pattern catching the light as it passes through the chromatic enameling (as pictured). The enamel is a red-orange, rather close to dusky terra-cotta. The central stem of the cross pierces the three-dimensional crown through its center.
The crown used in this motif is a form of a coronet, with an alternating arrangement of lofted rays: three ‘pearls’ (represented here by five-prong set Old Mine Cut diamonds with open culets) and two plain gold Maltese crosses, both accented by a small roundel on their top arms. A single sizable rose cut diamond complements the center Old Mine, calling attention to the center of the design. The mid-band of the crown is reticulated by six delicate extensions that connect the top half to the lower half. This lower region constitutes the band of the crown, which is encrusted with a row of five rose cut diamonds fastened in place by pairs of shared bead prongs.
The significance of this design is wide-ranging, and the symbols of the Latin style cross, the Maltese and Formée cross/Croix Pattée, and the crown/coronet, are intriguing, especially when considered alongside the deep meanings held of the color red and the diamond gemstone: the Latin cross (the largest that is enameled) is a symbol of promise and purpose, a tender reminder of liberating compassion. In suit, the reddish enamel connotes passion and courage, initiative and action, while also representing the blood that built the bridge between the created and the Creator.
Moving along to the coronet, the pair of equal-sided crosses on the crown are either Maltese crosses or are Formée crosses/Croix Pattées, which each have a mélange of meanings depending on organization, culture, history and context. Generally, each of the arms of a Maltese cross allude to the virtues of wisdom, dignity, integrity and perseverance. The Formée cross/Croix Pattée has roots in the 1400s, and has widely been used in coats of arms and heraldry to speak to loyalty, bravery and duty. Thus, the design has long been used, as well, as a signifier of services such as military, emergency and hospital and even philanthropic clubs.
The crown itself is notable not only for its labored elaborateness, but for its compelling meanings. This design appears to be a stylized version of either British (Prince or Princess) or Spanish (Marquess) coronets, both of which utilize the squared cross forms and prominent ‘pearls’ intermittently. Here, pearls are replaced by glittering diamonds, which are elevated in a series of three, a deliberate choice to recall the holiness and perfection of the number, and to echo the divine appointment suggested in a royal coronet.
The use of diamonds catches and refracts the light, causing the pin head to sparkle. Diamonds symbolize purity and transcendence, and are believed to aid in clearing emotional distress and usher in fresh beginnings ripe for success. Diamonds are also thought to forge strength and fill emptiness with the richest love, while also solidifying authenticity of relationships. With these beliefs in mind, it is no wonder the jewel is so commonly preferred for engagement rings. In the case of this pin, the stone amplifies the piece’s spiritual and allegorical essence, and is specifically the imagery used to represent the Knights Templar, a mysterious Catholic military order founded in 1119 that helped lead the crusades and was also charged with protecting European visitors to the Holy Land. The Freemasons revived this symbolism in the 1700s, and is currently used by various closed member organizations today.
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General Information: All additional jewelry boxes, ring boxes, and other jewelry items pictured alongside a featured listing are considered props, are for photographic and display purposes only and are not included in the transaction unless otherwise noted. Items do not come with physical documentation, appraisals, or certifications, unless explicitly stated in the item description and/or title. While jewelry is inspected upon procurement by the shop as well as prior to shipment, Revival Fine Jewelry cannot guarantee a warranty once items leave our inventory, given the delicate and individual nature of secondhand articles and the unaccountability of buyer handling post-purchase.
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Returns: While Revival Fine Jewelry aims to provide a smooth experience from start to finish, customers are encouraged to reach out regarding any issue or dissatisfaction, so that we may work together toward a resolution. If a return is desired, the shop must be notified of an intention to return within 3 days of confirmed delivery, and item(s) must be shipped back to the shop within 7 days of confirmed delivery. All materials (gift box, inserts, cards) must be returned with the item(s). Returns declared after the 3 day window and/or postmarked after 7 days of receipt will neither be accepted nor refunded. Customers are responsible for generating an insured return shipping label (international customers included) and relaying the tracking information to Revival Fine Jewelry. Returns that do not include full insurance and/or tracking, and are damaged or lost in transit, will not be refunded. If a return is accepted, customers will be refunded less the original cost of shipping, handling and insurance, the expense of any damages incurred, and a 10% restocking fee (of the original purchase price). All sale items, items altered or resized by the buyer post-purchase, and all storage/ boxes are considered final sale and are ineligible for a return or refund.
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Pricing: Revival Fine Jewelry reserves the right to decrease, increase, alter and modify inventory pricing to meet market rarity, demand or value; to offset platform, transaction or seller's fees; to adapt to economic inflation and fluctuation; and to defray specific business expenses. Pricing is the sole discretion of every small business.
Regarding Brooches & Pins: Often significantly and curiously undervalued jewelry items, brooches, pins and stick pins are treasured pieces of history in this shop. Accordingly, their pricing is calculated analogous to other fine jewelry, including their symbolic meaning, rarity and historical prestige. Such pieces are typically converted to other forms of jewelry, and are therefore becoming increasingly rare in their original states. Aside from being perfectly wearable as sophisticated lapel ornaments, brooches and pins of all kinds are prime candidates for many kinds of fine jewelry conversions, including rings, earrings, pendants, and charms, if so desired by the consumer post-purchase. Revival Fine Jewelry does not perform conversion projects for customers.
Regarding Storage & Boxes: All specifications, including but not limited to the measurements, age, origins, and material compositions are supplied in good faith as professional estimations constructed using professional grade tools, years of learned and honed skills, educational resources and academic scholarship, and refined research methods. Regardless of our confidence in our descriptions and the photographs deemed viable extensions of these descriptions, we cannot guarantee the definitiveness, faultlessness, or exactitude beyond our knowledge and expertise. Kindly keep in mind that this and all items are sold as-is vintage, antique and estate secondhand wares, and consequently bear conditional wear in matter and operation commensurate with age and use.
More information on these, and more, topics may be found in the shop policies.
All layaway terms may be found here, and all shop policies may be found here.
Layaway is available for full priced, non-sale items priced $600.00 USD or greater, and items may not be combined to attain price-eligibility. Plans are offered as 3-month/90-day maximum terms.
In exchange for offering interest-free plans, customers agree to abide and uphold the following nonnegotiable terms and conditions:
- A 30% deposit is due upfront to reserve the item for layaway and pull it from public sale on all of our shopping platforms. Shipping expenses are added to this first payment unless otherwise requested.
- The remaining 70% balance is divided up into three subsequent monthly payments due on the same day of the following three months. If delinquent, a $20.00 USD late fee is added per day to an overdue payment until paid.
- In the event that a layaway installment is left unpaid for seven (7) days and no communication is received from the designated customer, the layaway plan will be presumed abandoned. While the item will be returned to public sale, all payments made hitherto are still considered final.
Layaway items are promptly boxed and shipped to the designated customer once the final payment successfully processes. Taxes, import and other legal fees are not calculated into the payments, and are the sole responsibility of the customer, whether a domestic US or international buyer. Revival Fine Jewelry is not responsible for calculating, covering or adding such costs into purchase prices.
All layaway payments as well as all items purchased through layaway plans are considered final sale; neither payments nor items may be refunded, transferred, exchanged or returned. Revival Fine Jewelry does not issue store credit.
Revival Fine Jewelry reserves the right to cancel any layaway plan at any point for any reason if fraudulent activity is suspected. In this event, the designated customer will be notified prior to the intended cancellation of their plan.
Request a layaway plan via email here. Remember to specify your desired item by providing its link, title or SKU/code.