Antique Russian Horseshoe Brooch with Sapphires, Diamonds & Pearls, c. 1890

Horseshoes bring good luck! Especially in the years shortly before and around 1900, such pieces of jewelry were very fashionable. It was not quite clear which way the horseshoe should point. We find pieces of jewelry in which it is shown pointing downwards and those in which it is open at the top. If you believe that luck is fleeting, you wear the horseshoe with the opening facing downwards so that luck cannot fly away. However, if you believe that luck can be lost, you wear the horseshoe with the opening facing upwards - so that the luck remains safely inside. This gold brooch is designed in the shape of a horseshoe. The iron is pointing downwards and thus holds the luck in place. Shining diamonds and sparkling sapphires of very good quality adorn the horseshoe. It also includes a small flower made up of three natural oriental pearls and small diamonds. The brooch has an eventful history. Its hallmark with the number "56" proves that it was created in the Russian Empire in the last years of the 19th century. The number reveals the gold content: 56 zolotniks correspond to 56 of 96 parts of gold, i.e. around 14 carats or a fineness of 583/000. This hallmark was used in Russia between 1847 and 1898. Based on the design and workmanship of the brooch, we believe that it was made at the end of this period. Unfortunately, it bears no other marks that would provide information about the workshop or the goldsmith who made it. The next location of the brooch that we know of is Zurich. Here it was sold in 1997 in a gallery in Bahnhofstrasse for 28,000 Swiss francs as a piece of jewelry from the workshop of Karl Fabergé, in a case bearing the name "К.ФАБЕРЖЕ." (Fabergé) and the Russian eagle. For the following years, the brooch was part of a collection in Bad Reichenhall until we were finally able to purchase it here in Berlin. The brooch is in very good condition and is a beautiful, auspicious greeting from another era. It is of very high quality and could well have come from Fabergé's workshop - but unfortunately it is not signed. As the Zurich gallery has been closed since 2005, it has not been possible to obtain any information from this source that would prove the attribution to Fabergé beyond doubt.

Estimation:€5,980

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