This 22k gold coin bracelet features six British sovereigns connected with 10k gold double loops and a spring ring clasp. The coins range in date from 1877 through 1900, each with the portrait of Queen Victoria at various stages of life. The one pound sterling coin contained the portrait of a teenaged Queen Victoria for over half a century, until it was updated in 1887 with a more mature portrait to coincide with the queen’s Golden Jubilee.
The portrait of the young queen can be seen on two of the coins (minted in 1877 and 1878). These portraits depict the queen with her hair in a bun; on the back of one coin is the image of St. George slaying a dragon and on the other is a coat of arms. In 1878, a new portrait was introduced, which can be seen in the two center coins of the bracelet, which were both minted in 1891. This coin shows the queen with a small crown atop her head, and a slightly more detailed version of the St. George image on the back. However, the coin was met with disapproval and considered to be an inaccurate depiction of the queen, and was updated again in 1893, making it one of the shortest lived portraits on British coinage. The last two coins in the bracelet (minted in 1896 and 1900) contains the “Veiled Head” portrait, the final iteration of the coin.
This bracelet is like a chronological look back in history through these coins, and makes an interesting piece of jewelry for an Anglophile! The 22k gold of the coins has a beautiful glow, and the repeated circular coins have a lovely presence on the wrist. The coins are bezel set in 10k gold and held together by 10k gold loops that culminate in a spring ring clasp—a nice compliment to the circular loops and coins that the bracelet consists of. The imagery of the coins is richly detailed, and the coins alternate front and back so that a variety of imagery can be seen at all times. Both sides of each coin are visible in the bezel, and the bracelet can be worn with either side facing up.
Each coin acid tests as 22k gold. The loops, bezels, and spring rings are 10k gold, marked on the clasp. The bracelet also features a safety chain that can be unclipped. The bracelet measures 7”. Each coin is 15/16”. The bracelet weighs 59.8 grams and each coin weighs 7.9 grams.
