gold pin

How to date a vintage brooch • If you see a brooch, the first thing to do is to check out its clasp mechanisms. The ‘T-bar hinge and c-clasp’ types (see photos below) were generally used from the 19th Century up until the around 1920s. Some modern artisans still prefer to use a c-clasp – but on modern brooches you’ll probably never see a T-bar hinge.   • Check the length of the pin itself – generally speaking, the longer the pin, the older the brooch (this was perhaps due to clothing being much thicker and heavier in the old days, so a long pin was needed to keep it in place securely). PINS - Generally, the greater the diameter and heavier the material, the older the pin. Heavy pins were acceptable in the loosely woven natural fabrics of the 19th century. The finer … [Read more...] about Is your brooch vintage or antique?