Victorian 12k Rose Gold Italian Locket with bow, seed pearls and ruby pastes

Rare Antique Italian locket with its bow holder that can be used like a brooch.

This is a lovely piece in original condition. It can be worn as a brooch, and also has two hooks intended to attach a chain to it. It works well worn on a watch chain to create a beautiful necklace.

Details:

The locket dates from the 19th century and was made in Italy. It is not stamped and was tested by my goldsmith with the X-ray analyzer. Please see the detailed results of the analysis on the last picture. To summarize, the bow and locket are mainly made of a Gold, Silver and Copper alloy, and in different proportions. The bow contains 53% gold, strictly speaking this corresponds to 12.7k. The locket contains 29% gold which corresponds to 7k. The unusual gold contents confirm the piece was made at a time when there weren't strict regulations on jewelry. Please note, less than 9k is generally not considered solid gold, so here only the bow would be considered solid gold by modern standards.

Condition:

The locket and bow are in very good antique condition. One red stone has been replaced. The locket closes well, and inside the two original rings are present.

Measurements:

-Locket width : 19mm / 3/4"

-Locket height : 23mm / 15/16""

-Assembly Bow-Locket height: 41mm / 1 5/8"

-Bow width : 27mm / 1 1/16"

-Assembly Bow-Locket weight : 7.0g