This pendant is handmade and set in 15 carat Rose Gold. The garnets are Bohemianism dark red gemstones that are all hand cut in a Rose Cut and hand set in the cross setting.
Garnets are very old mined gemstones and have been widely known for thousands of years. Even Noah, it is reported, used a lantern from Garnet in order to safely steer his Ark through the darkness of the night. Garnets are found in jeweler from ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman eras. Many courageous discoverers and travelers wore Garnets for protection, as they were considered popular talismans and protective stones, because it was believed in those days that Garnets illuminate the night and prevent their wearer from any sort of evil. Today science explained to us that the proverbial luminosity of Garnet is caused by its high refraction of light. The Bohemian garnets were used in jewelry in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance Period and highly desired in the 19th Century. The garnets were mined in Bohemia, Saxony and Scotland. In the language of the Gemstones, during the Victorian time, garnets represented “Virtue”.
This cross would have been worn on a ribbon at that time but I will include a new 14 karat gold chain with the purchase. The cross is in excellent condition and is 2 inches and 1 1/4 inch wide. The bale is original to the cross. A dramatic cross in excellent condition which is Pre-Civil War in age and comes with a new gold chain.