Description

Antique Book Link Choker with Coral Figural Clasp

c. 1870s – 1890s

I love a piece of jewelry with a story. Even if I don’t get to know the whole story. Maybe there’s a little engraving – a name or date. Maybe the current owner can give me the full play-by-play. In either case, and in every version in-between, it’s often the story that separates one piece from another. We may not have the full story on this Antique Book Link Choker but sometimes that’s even more fun.

What We Love About It:

Antique Book Link Choker with Coral Figural Clasp

Book link necklaces are a bit of a rarity. They aren’t made anymore (that I know of) but they were every popular in Victorian times. Each link looks like a little book and usually has a pattern on it (this one has a diamond pattern – a double win). If you’re looking for a unique necklace, a book link chain is one of the ways to go, for sure.

The Deets:

This book link choker is gold filled (meaning a thin sheet of gold is mechanically bonded to the outside of a core material (usually copper), which was very common at the time this was created. Most folks couldn’t afford solid gold jewelry and this was a great alternative. Each of the tiny links is 4mm tall/wide and connects to the next with a small loop. The clasp is a forward facing clasp (it sits front and center instead of at the back of the neck) and holds a heart on each side of a carved coral portrait cameo sitting between an emblem of some sort. It appears that something used to hang from just below the figure, as there is a loop there for such. I’m happy to work with you to add some sort of drop – my personal opinion is that a Baroque pearl would look stunning! To the reverse of the clasp, it’s flat and there is an engraving: From Hite to Bettie. The former owner wasn’t sure who Hite or Bettie might have been, but herein lies the fun – we can make up our own story. The choker is secured by a tension barrel clasp at the edge of one of the hearts and the necklace measures 14″, making it a choker on most any neck. 

Would you like to add to Hite and Bettie’s story? Their choker is waiting for you to take her home.