Unusual Artifacts: The Double-Eye Agate Pendant, Early Seventeenth Century

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
via The Royal Collection Trust
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Dating to the early Seventeenth Century, this German pendant of gold, enamel and double-eye agate was first recorded in the Royal Collection in 1872.

On the obverse, an oval cabochon double-eye agate is set in a gold mount with an enamel scrollwork of deep and light blue with white spots.  The double-eye agate set in this frame is not original to the piece.  A later owner of the pendant replaced the original stone which was likely a cameo.  

The pendant was found in a burial site, having been buried at some point after it's creation in the early Seventeenth Century.  It's possible that the original stone or cameo was damaged while being buried or that the original centerpiece was replaced with the double-eye agate as it was intended as an amulet to ward off "The Evil Eye" an to protect against various ailments.  Another later addition to the piece was the small loop at the bottom which would allow the suspension of another drop or pendant or to enable the piece to be sewn into a garment.

The reverse of the piece is likely unchanged from its original pre-burial form.  The back shows a central leaf-shape surrounded by scrolls in opaque dark-blue, light-blue and translucent green and red enamel.  These enamels are very weathered and pitted.  Here, the white spots on the surface aren't intentional decoration, but rather deposits of calcium carbonate which resulted from having been buried in the earth.

Despite its age and having been buried, the piece is in remarkably good condition.  The foil behind the enamels is still intact and the color of the remaining enamel is quite bright and lustrous.  

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
via The Royal Collection Trust
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Figure of the Day: A Fool's Head, the Jet Jester, 1550-1700

Spanish Jet Figure, 1550-1700
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Small figures of jet (a particularly dense type of coal which can be carved and polished) like the one pictured above, especially in Spain, were created to seems to signify that a pilgrim had completed his or her journey, and reached the shrine of St James (the patron Saint of Spain) at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. This was a trek which pilgrims made for well over the course of six hundred years, from the twelfth to the eighteenth century.


Many jet figures like this seem to have been drilled with holes to form beads for rosaries. From the earliest times, medicinal and magical qualities were assigned to jet which could be found in different parts of Europe (as well as North America).

This jet piece, which is larger than most, represents a fool's head and its precise function is uncertain. Perhaps it was the pommel of a jester's stick and may have been used during the “Feasts of Fools” when “the holiest offices and orders were made matters of the lightest jesting.”

The grinning portrait head has stylized tightly-curled hair, a large nose, wrinkled forehead and a ruff-like collar set on a bulbous base, on which are carved three shells. A smooth disc is carved on the back. It was made in Spain between 1550 and 1700.

Mastery of Design: The John Monson Locket, 1597

Locket of gold and other stuff
Inscribed for John Monson, 1597
The Victoria & Albert Museum

It’s a pretty locket.  It really is.  So, I don’t want to be icked out by it, but, I can’t help it.  You see,  according to the tradition of the family for whom this necklace was originally made, this locket contains part of the caul (the membrane enclosing the fetus before birth) that John Monson was born with in 1597. This was considered to be lucky, especially as a protection against drowning.  Why?  I couldn’t tell you.

At this point in our human history, there was a strong belief in the medicinal or magical properties of various natural substances , especially in Renaissance England. For instance, unicorn horn (actually part of the horn of the narwhal, an arctic whale) or bezoar stone, which was found in the stomach of a goat, were thought to be powerful antidotes against poison. Yucky things such as these were often set in pieces of jewelry.  Human stuff, too, it seems was assigned magical and medicinal properties.  Hence this baby-gunk locket.

When this was made, around 1579, men and women alike would have worn such a necklace, but only if they were part of the aristocracy.  You see, good ol’ Henry VIII (ruled 1509-1547) had made various attempts in the form of sumptuary laws to restrict jewelry wearing to the upper classes.  Many agreed with this idea.  For example, in 1585 the Puritan Philip Stubbes complained that it was impossible to tell “who is noble, who is worshipful, who is a gentleman and who is not” because jewels were worn by anybody who could afford them, whatever their rank.

So, we can assume that this was part of the jewels of a wealthy family.  Most likely,  this locket was made as a christening gift. Most babies in Elizabethan England were baptized within a few days of their birth, but aristocratic families often postponed this in order to allow for social arrangements.  Baptism gifts were often made of precious metals and were meant to be kept by the recipient well into adulthood.  John Munson, it is thought, wore this necklace for many years.

Unusual Artifacts: An Italian Coral Amulet, c. 1600

Carved Coral Amulet
Italy, Seventeenth Century
The Victoria & Albert Museum

A carved coral amulet, this jewel was made in Italy around 1600 and was intended as a baby gift. Mounted in enameled gold filigree, the piece is carved with a bird meant to protect the child from harm. 

The amulet could have been suspended from a ribbon over the cradle or, perhaps, hung from a rattle.

Figure of the Day: A Fool's Head, the Jet Jester, 1550-1700

Spanish Jet Figure, 1550-1700
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Small figures of jet (a particularly dense type of coal which can be carved and polished) like the one pictured above, especially in Spain, were created to seems to signify that a pilgrim had completed his or her journey, and reached the shrine of St James (the patron Saint of Spain) at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. This was a trek which pilgrims made for well over the course of six hundred years, from the twelfth to the eighteenth century.


Many jet figures like this seem to have been drilled with holes to form beads for rosaries. From the earliest times, medicinal and magical qualities were assigned to jet which could be found in different parts of Europe (as well as North America).

This jet piece, which is larger than most, represents a fool's head and its precise function is uncertain. Perhaps it was the pommel of a jester's stick and may have been used during the “Feasts of Fools” when “the holiest offices and orders were made matters of the lightest jesting.”

The grinning portrait head has stylized tightly-curled hair, a large nose, wrinkled forehead and a ruff-like collar set on a bulbous base, on which are carved three shells. A smooth disc is carved on the back. It was made in Spain between 1550 and 1700.

Mastery of Design: The Double-Eye Agate Pendant, Early Seventeenth Century

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
via The Royal Collection Trust
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Dating to the early Seventeenth Century, this German pendant of gold, enamel and double-eye agate was first recorded in the Royal Collection in 1872.

On the obverse, an oval cabochon double-eye agate is set in a gold mount with an enamel scrollwork of deep and light blue with white spots.  The double-eye agate set in this frame is not original to the piece.  A later owner of the pendant replaced the original stone which was likely a cameo.  

The pendant was found in a burial site, having been buried at some point after it's creation in the early Seventeenth Century.  It's possible that the original stone or cameo was damaged while being buried or that the original centerpiece was replaced with the double-eye agate as it was intended as an amulet to ward off "The Evil Eye" an to protect against various ailments.  Another later addition to the piece was the small loop at the bottom which would allow the suspension of another drop or pendant or to enable the piece to be sewn into a garment.

The reverse of the piece is likely unchanged from its original pre-burial form.  The back shows a central leaf-shape surrounded by scrolls in opaque dark-blue, light-blue and translucent green and red enamel.  These enamels are very weathered and pitted.  Here, the white spots on the surface aren't intentional decoration, but rather deposits of calcium carbonate which resulted from having been buried in the earth.

Despite its age and having been buried, the piece is in remarkably good condition.  The foil behind the enamels is still intact and the color of the remaining enamel is quite bright and lustrous.  

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
via The Royal Collection Trust
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Mastery of Design: The Tiger Claw Necklace, c. 1865

Tiger Claw Necklace
India, c. 1865
The Victoria & Albert Museum

In Nineteenth Century India, a tiger’s claws were considered to be powerful charms against evil. They were frequently used as amulets. Visitors to India, especially the British, found this custom charming and started to bring tiger claw amulets back to Britain as souvenirs. By the middle of the century, with a growing market, makers of tiger claw charms branched out into more elaborate pieces such as this one.

It was clearly made for the British market. The design is very similar to the shape and form of European jewelry. This particular necklace was exhibited at the Paris International Exhibition in 1867. Ten tiger claws of graded size have been set in engraved gold. The claws are linked by chains and the whole piece hangs from a gold snake. 

It’s quite ghastly, no?

Mastery of Design: The Tiger Claw Necklace, c. 1865

Tiger Claw Necklace
India, c. 1865
The Victoria & Albert Museum

In Nineteenth Century India, a tiger’s claws were considered to be powerful charms against evil. They were frequently used as amulets. Visitors to India, especially the British, found this custom charming and started to bring tiger claw amulets back to Britain as souvenirs. By the middle of the century, with a growing market, makers of tiger claw charms branched out into more elaborate pieces such as this one.

It was clearly made for the British market. The design is very similar to the shape and form of European jewelry. This particular necklace was exhibited at the Paris International Exhibition in 1867. Ten tiger claws of graded size have been set in engraved gold. The claws are linked by chains and the whole piece hangs from a gold snake. 

It’s quite ghastly, no?

Mastery of Design: An Italian Coral Amulet, c. 1600

Carved Coral Amulet
Italy, Seventeenth Century
The Victoria & Albert Museum

A carved coral amulet, this jewel was made in Italy around 1600 and was intended as a baby gift. Mounted in enameled gold filigree, the piece is carved with a bird meant to protect the child from harm. 

The amulet could have been suspended from a ribbon over the cradle or, perhaps, hung from a rattle.

Figure of the Day: A Fool's Head, the Jet Jester, 1550-1700

Spanish Jet Figure, 1550-1700
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Small figures of jet (a particularly dense type of coal which can be carved and polished) like the one pictured above, especially in Spain, were created to seems to signify that a pilgrim had completed his or her journey, and reached the shrine of St James (the patron Saint of Spain) at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.  This was a trek which pilgrims made for well over the course of six hundred years, from the twelfth to the eighteenth century.

Many jet figures like this seem to have been drilled with holes to form beads for rosaries.  From the earliest times, medicinal and magical qualities were assigned to jet which could be found in different parts of Europe (as well as North America).

This jet piece, which is larger than most, represents a fool's head and its precise function is uncertain. Perhaps it was the pommel of a jester's stick and may have been used during the “Feasts of Fools” when “the holiest offices and orders were made matters of the lightest jesting.”

 The grinning portrait head has stylized tightly-curled hair, a large nose, wrinkled forehead and a ruff-like collar set on a bulbous base, on which are carved three shells. A smooth disc is carved on the back.  It was made in Spain between 1550 and 1700.

Gifts of Grandeur and Ickiness: The John Monson Locket, 1597

Locket of gold and other stuff
Inscribed for John Monson, 1597
The Victoria & Albert Museum

It’s a pretty locket.  It really is.  So, I don’t want to be icked out by it, but, I can’t help it.  You see,  according to the tradition of the family for whom this necklace was originally made, this locket contains part of the caul (the membrane enclosing the fetus before birth) that John Monson was born with in 1597. This was considered to be lucky, especially as a protection against drowning.  Why?  I couldn’t tell you.

At this point in our human history, there was a strong belief in the medicinal or magical properties of various natural substances , especially in Renaissance England. For instance, unicorn horn (actually part of the horn of the narwhal, an arctic whale) or bezoar stone, which was found in the stomach of a goat, were thought to be powerful antidotes against poison. Yucky things such as these were often set in pieces of jewelry.  Human stuff, too, it seems was assigned magical and medicinal properties.  Hence this baby-gunk locket.

When this was made, around 1579, men and women alike would have worn such a necklace, but only if they were part of the aristocracy.  You see, good ol’ Henry VIII (ruled 1509-1547) had made various attempts in the form of sumptuary laws to restrict jewelry wearing to the upper classes.  Many agreed with this idea.  For example, in 1585 the Puritan Philip Stubbes complained that it was impossible to tell “who is noble, who is worshipful, who is a gentleman and who is not” because jewels were worn by anybody who could afford them, whatever their rank.

So, we can assume that this was part of the jewels of a wealthy family.  Most likely,  this locket was made as a christening gift. Most babies in Elizabethan England were baptized within a few days of their birth, but aristocratic families often postponed this in order to allow for social arrangements.  Baptism gifts were often made of precious metals and were meant to be kept by the recipient well into adulthood.  John Munson, it is thought, wore this necklace for many years.