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REF 1467 Hummingbird Brooch
The Victorian fascination with jewellery in forms of flora and fauna extended to the use of fauna itself, as in the case of this brooch made from the head of a hummingbird. Hummingbird jewellery was exhibited at the London International Exhibition of 1872 by the the firms of Ward and Co. and A. Boucard : 'Birds and insects have been utilised and treated as personal ornaments by A. Boucard. As specimens of beautiful colour one can scarcely see anything better than this.' The hummingbird on this gold brooch has a typical gold beak added, scarlet feathers and an iridescent amber throat. It is set to a gold bar with foliate and pearl decoration. The brooch is 5 cm [2 inches] long, the bird is 3.2 cm [ 1 and 1/4 inches] across and stands 2 cm [3/4 of an inch] high. A rare item in the Victorian taste for the naturalistic in jewellery, in excellent, undamaged condition. For similar see Colour Plate 90, page 372 in Jewellery The International Era by Shirley Bury.
sold
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