I duhno?...hat pin?

[unclemac]

Made of brass, those black circles look maybe faceted, but beach worn and not stones. Found in a place that produces all kinds of 1880's stuff.

so what do you think...hat pin?

 

[DCMatt]

Hat pin or hairpin. Pre-1920's.

Victorian and early Edwardian women did not cut their hair. They needed lots of help keeping those curls knotted up on their heads.

By the 1920's women were wearing shorter hair styles and moving away from those gigantic hats.

 

[Reanm8er]

Nice find unclemac! What Matt said, exactly. From the late 19 century through the early 20th, women carried or used these long hat pins, yes because of their long hair but also for self protection. Sex trafficking is not just a modern problem but was rampant in the 1900s. Women traveling alone were likely to be either pestered or accosted and these things could be pulled out of her hair and readily used to tickle somebody's innards if necessary. The assailant would usually limp off and die somewhere else from the contaminates on the pin or she would have the chance to run away. That would be no small feat with those long heavy skirts. Who knows, perhaps this one hit a rib?

Best wishes!

 

[DCMatt]

Hat pin defense - 1904. Printed in the San Francisco Call (newspaper).

 

[DCMatt]

Here is a fun and interesting article about "hat pin peril" which apparently caused quite a bit of hubbub around the turn of the 20th C.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/hist...-couldnt-handle-20th-century-woman-180951219/

 

[Reanm8er]

Thanks Matt! BRAVO!

 

[unclemac]

thanks guys..so what are the black circles made from?

 

[invent4hir]

It must be my eyes, but they look like they have some rust on them. If not, perhaps black onyx.

 

[unclemac]

not rust, muck from being in the mud for 100 years or so...really don't think they are stone.

 

[Reanm8er]

They could be Hematite aka "Black Diamond". Hematite is actually a form of iron oxide and left underground for an extended period where the moisture level rises and falls it could convert to this. Are both sides the same?

 

[unclemac]

no the other side is obviously not made for show, it is just the back

 

[DCMatt]

thanks guys..so what are the black circles made from?

They may be 'Jet' which is related to coal and was popular in jewelry in Victorian times. It's where we get the idiom "jet-black", although I haven't heard anyone say that for a very long time...

Google 'Whitby jet' and you'll see many examples. Also possibly 'French jet' which is actually glass (fake jet) and was popular during the era.