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| Vinaigrette G. & M. Crichton Scotland, c. 1885 The Victoria & Albert Museum |
The Edinburgh jewelry firm of G. & M. Crichton, at the London Exhibition of 1872, was given a fair amount of praise for their work in general. However, their highland shoulder brooches and works which used wholly Scottish materials, were granted the greatest raves. By the 1880s, thanks in large part to the poems and novels of Sir Walter Scott and the loyalty of Queen Victoria and the late Prince Consort, Scotland was a popular tourist spot. Some of the most fashionable souvenirs to be taken home from Scotland were the examples of “pebble” jewelry which were produced by local workmasters.
Here’s an example of the sort of wares produced by G. & M. Crichton using local materials. This vinaigrette (a small vessel used to hold scent or smelling salts used to combat the pervasive foul city smells of the Nineteenth Century) is constructed of silver set with citrines, amethysts, bloodstone, mottled jasper and banded agate. Signed “G. & M. Crichton” it also is marked with Edinburgh hallmarks for 1885-1886. The vinaigrette was praised by critics for its handsome design and the use of the large, faceted citrine in the cap of the vessel.
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