Form Watch
Artist
Maker unknown
(Swiss)
Date1880-1900
MediumGold, enamel, diamonds, emeralds, steel, rubies
DimensionsOverall: 2 1/4 x 1 1/4 x 5/16 in., (5.7 x 3.2 x 0.8 cm,)
ClassificationsT&E FOR TIMEKEEPING
Credit LineProctor Collection, Thomas R. Proctor Watch Collection
Terms
Object numberPC. 389
DescriptionGold beetle case with enamel wings studded with stars set with brilliants. Modern Swiss stem wind.On View
On viewCollections
Copyright<a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="https://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc/4.0/80x15.png" /></a><br />This work is licensed under a <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License</a>.
Label TextThe first known use of this type of ornamentation occurred in ancient Egypt, where talismanic scarabs were worn. Their symbolic role lasted until the eighteenth century when a romantic interest in naturalism made insects acceptable as design sources. Once legitimized, jewelry designers adapted them into richly varied formats. When the fashion waned, another hundred years would elapse before bejeweled scarab, wood lice, earwig, and grasshopper forms reemerged as fashionable jewelry.
