Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Mastery of Design: The Cypher Brooch, 1838

Cypher Brooch, 1838
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II



Today, in honor of Carol Channing, our first entry in our “Exceptional People” series, we’ve been looking at diamonds—Miss Channing’s best friend. So, I thought it would be fun to share with you a brooch from the Royal Collection with which I’m not previously familiar.

Made in 1838 for Queen Victoria this brooch takes the form of an eight-pointed star. The star has been set with lovely emeralds surrounded by a border of fine, brilliant-cut diamonds. A cipher in Arabic script has been mounted in diamonds against the emeralds at the center. The backing of the pin is silver, customary in the early Nineteenth Century for diamond pieces, while the pin and catch are crafted of sturdier gold. 



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