This gorgeous festoon necklace has a soft and delicate arrangement of moonstone and garnet cabochons, favorites of the Edwardian era. Feminine and romantic, the necklace drapes to create gorgeous curved lines around the neck. Five oval moonstone cabochons lay horizontally across a hand-made 14k gold chain, while four teardrop-shaped moonstones dangle gracefully from alternating garnets. The gold chain loops between the cabochons for a lace-like effect.
Festoon necklaces like this one were popular during the Edwardian era, and moonstones were often paired with garnets. Moonstones are milky, luminous and seductive, and were often a reference to the feminine and the moon. Moonstones are also considered a stone of strength, and in the early Victorian language of symbolic love, the gemstone was a representation of romantic love. Paired with the red colored garnet, the dreamy gemstone of creativity and passion, this necklace is a fine example of Edwardian sentiments.
The five larger moonstones are approximately 12mm in size; the four smaller moonstones are 10.5mm in size. The six garnets measure 3.8mm. The necklace is 17” long and weighs 32 grams. The gold is unmarked and acid tests as 14k.
Circa 1900.
