18k Carved Tortoise shell Floral and Bird Link Bracelet

Gold spun as fine as thread, wrapped around carved shell the color of honey. This bracelet was made by hand in an age when no machine could do this kind of work, and it shows in every link.

Three graduated oval panels of blonde tortoiseshell, each carved in relief with blossoms, alternate with links of gold cannetille: coiled and twisted wire built up into birds among flowers, most likely phoenixes, the Chinese emblem of grace and good fortune. The bracelet is widest at the center, 31.2 mm, and tapers to 18.6 mm toward the clasp, so it sits fullest across the top of the wrist.

Where it comes from. Through the second half of the nineteenth century, Chinese goldsmiths made jewelry like this for Western buyers, pairing traditional carving with the filigree Europeans prized. The character marks on the tongue of the clasp point to that origin, and the gold tests at 18k or higher, typical of Chinese export work, which often ran richer than European gold.

Era: Late Victorian era, Chinese export, circa 1880 or earlier
Materials: Yellow gold, tests at least 18k; carved blonde tortoiseshell
Markings: Chinese character marks on the tongue of the clasp
Special Feature: Hand-built gold cannetille bird links
Dimensions: 7" long; 31.2 mm wide at the center, tapering to 18.6 mm; 11.6 mm deep
Weight: 30.9 grams

See it in person at 3 Water Street in Historic Downtown Mystic, or write to hello@petrastar.com for more photos or a video.