Object Description
An antique French yellow gold snake bracelet, circa 1870. The bracelet is designed to wrap around the wrist, the woven 18ct yellow gold braided to be highly flexible, one end featuring a snake’s head with open mouth and engraved and decorated with two cabochon rubies for eyes and small diamonds set into a ‘V’ on the head, the other end a smooth tapered gold termination for the tail.
Period
Victorian, circa 1870
Origin
France
Gemstones
11 x diamonds
2 x ruby cabochons
Setting
18ct yellow gold, French marks and worn maker’s mark
Weight
34.7 grams
Dimensions
Highly flexible – would fit a small to medium wrist
Condition
Very fine
Directors Notes
The snake motif has been used in jewellery for centuries, in Ancient Egypt the snake symbolised royalty and divinity, for the Ancient Greeks it was a symbol of healing and medicine. It also had a surge of popularity during the Victorian era after Queen Victoria received a snake ring from Prince Albert upon their engagement. The motif continued to be incredibly popular in jewellery of the 20th Century and can be seen reimagined in so many ways throughout the decades. The snake is frequently associated with the qualities of wisdom, power, eternal love and everlasting life and the smooth sinuous lines considered a thing of beauty, indeed William Hogarth referred to ‘the serpentine line’ as a ‘line of beauty’ in his ‘The Analysis of Beauty’