Very fine quality example of a Victorian carved Whitby necklace pendant. The pendant features an inlaid champleve enamel engraved portrait pendant of a Tudor period lady laid onto a silver base and set into a superbly carved jet frame decorated with flowers, leave and acorns.
Museum quality, and a jet masters hand at work here, companion pieces to this rare beauty are exhibited at the W. Hammond Whitby Jet Museum in Church St., Whitby (see last photo).
The pendant has a large suspension bail for wear on a ribbon, as it would have originally been worn and it has a heavy duty pin back for wear as a brooch.
Materials: Whitby jet, sterling silver, enamel.
Measurement: 2 x 1-1/2 inches
Circa: 1870
Weight: 16.4 grams
Condition: Excellent with no real issues. There is a little fine crackle on the portrait in the neck area that is visible only under magnification. A very small nibble to the edge of jet frame near the pin hinge is polished out and smooth so it has probably been there since manufacture rather than damage. The white marks on the face in some of the images are camera reflection, not enamel loss.