Dendrites - tiny inclusions in agate - resemble landscapes, coral, seaweed, or frost patterns. In Victorian jewelry, the branching patterns evoked vitality, nature's persistence, and the passage of time. Looking at dendritic agate can be meditative, like gazing at a tree through fog. Here, each agate oval is framed, portrait-like, by dozens of flat cut garnets.
MATERIALS: 10k gold (tests), 10.5mm x 8.5mm agates, 1.5mm flat cut garnets
AGE: c. 1820
CONDITION: Very good - ear wires are probably replacements; one garnet (two total) on each earring has a small chip, one garnet is a replacement
SIZE: 7/8" measured from the top of the ear wire, 1/2" width