This Etruscan Revival-ish chain was made in 1880 with an orangey "bloom" on the links. Blooming, a popular finishing technique for karat gold jewelry from 1870 to 1890, was first documented in 1853. The means for creating a bloom finish involved dipping a karat gold item into a boiling mixture of hydrochloric acid (muriatic acid), saltpeter (potassium nitrate), salt and water. This process burned off any alloys on the surface resulting in an alloy-free, thin layer of soft, pure gold on the item. It's so toxic to do this (the process, not the result) that it's not done today.
MATERIALS: 14k gold (tests)
AGE: c. 1880
CONDITION: Very good
SIZE: 19 1/4" long, 1/4" circles alternate with 3/16" twisted wire, 19 1/4" long. 7/16" diameter spring ring