Garnets were cut thin and flat in the Georgian era because the deep red stones get very dark when they have depth. Making the stone shallow allowed more light to pass through it. Georgian jewelers put reflective metal foil behind the stones in closed-back settings, bouncing light back toward the viewer and giving the stone an intense, glowing red look. When arranged in this foil/closed back/garnet combo, garnets could be cut into tiny irregular shapes and fused together to create solid color mosaics like this. c. 1800; likely part of what was once a larger piece of jewelry.
MATERIALS: 10k gold (tests), flat cut garnets, new 14k gold chain
AGE: c. 1800
CONDITION: Very good - this piece was probably a component of a larger piece of jewelry that was converted into a pendant
SIZE: 7/8" length including the bale, 5/8" width, 18" chain