Gentleman's Pocket Watch Fobs and Chains

Watch Keys, Fobs and Chains 

Lost Works of Art

Theses forgotten pieces of history captured our imagination and hearts from the very beginning. The watch chains are an awkward length usually being 13" or as short as 3" in length, nonetheless they are beautifully crafted and we have used them countless times in our pieces. When traveling to London in the summer of 2014  I accidentally stumbled upon a shoe box size of a museum specializing in watches and their evolution. Last summer the collection moved to the Royal Science Museum.    

  The collection was breathtaking. I thought that we have found some beautiful watch keys, chains and fobs in our jewelry pieces, but the collection at this museum was absolutely stunning! My imagination transported me back in time wondering about the past owners, their lifestyles and the stories that each of these pieces held silently behind the glass cases. 

                                    The Science Museum

The Clockmakers’ Museum in London is the oldest, and is considered by many to be one of the finest collections of clocks, watches, and sundials in the world.

 It contains some 600 English and European watches, 30 clocks and 15 marine timekeepers, together with a number of rare horological portraits. The majority of items range from c.1600 to c.1850.

The Collection had been at Guildhall in the City of London since 1874, but it has now moved to The Science Museum. It was formally opened by HRH The Princess Royal on 22nd October 2015 in a new gallery on the 2nd floor of The Science Museum.

            The watch key above on the bottom left section is an actual miniature portrait (presumably the owner's wife?). Other keys had the most exquisite enamel work I've ever seen.

This one above is from our collection, hand wired with garnet gemstones. Imagine the  story you can add to this beautiful piece of history! 

For our current collection visit our Etsy store: 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/TwoGirlsGems?ref=shopsection_shophome_leftnav