Beauty is timeless, but style is subject to the winds of change. That’s why collecting vintage horse jewelry can be such an exciting endeavor. As you rummage through the offerings at estate sales, auctions, and your favorite online horse jewelry retailer, you’re going to encounter horse jewelry in a dizzying array of looks – each one reflective of the aesthetic and vision of the jewelry designer and the time they were working.
How well do the styles of yesteryear translate to your look today? We’ll be honest with you: some looks frankly don’t stand the test of time very well. Once upon a time, it was the height of fashion to wear brooches made of the woven hair of your loved ones who had passed away. Called Mourning Jewelry, it was very popular indeed during the Georgian and Victorian period. Today, while it does have a strong base of ardent collectors, Mourning Jewelry doesn’t have the same universal appeal.
Some Victorian Horse Jewelry, however, still attracts immediate favorable attention from everyone who sees it. For example, check out this Victorian Gilt Locket with 3 Horseshoes. When you hear the word ‘gilt’ used in the vintage horse jewelry world, it refers to a piece of jewelry that has been covered with a thin layer of gold. This gold can be gold leaf or jeweler’s gold paint. Gilt jewelry was extremely popular throughout the Victorian era, when people loved having the warm luster and shine of gold available at a budget-friendly price.
This locket is quite large. It’s 1 1/2″ long by 1 1/8″ wide: you can fit two nice sized photos inside. Many vintage lockets tend to be very petite indeed, so this is a nice find. On the front of the locket are three enameled horseshoes, rendered in a patriotic suite of red, white, and blue. It’s a classic look that has well stood the test of time: a great vintage horse jewelry find.
