900 - Antique drop earrings with imitation diamonds.

Antique drop earrings with imitation diamonds. Silver, partially gold-plated; the ear wires are hallmarked. Length (measured without the ear wires): 32.63 mm. 3.7 g. Pair of vintage drop earrings, late 18th/early 19th century, with imitation diamonds in various shapes. With long ear hooks; the backs are gold-plated, as was typical of the period. The ear hooks have been replaced more recently; they likely originally featured a “jour-et-nuit” function (allowing the earrings to be worn short during the day and long in the evening by attaching the lower drops), but this feature is no longer present due to the new, continuous ear hooks. The imitations used are glass pastes, which enjoyed great popularity since their popularization by the French court jeweler Georg Friedrich Strass (1701–1773). As a fashion trend, they did not necessarily serve solely as a substitute for genuine gemstones but were sought after for their novelty value. By backing them with silver foil, diamonds—and, with the use of differently colored foils, other gemstones—could be imitated. Due to the manufacturing process, the stones have a black dot in the center when viewed from above. Auction date: Oct. 29, 2026 | estimated start time: 10:00 a.m. (CET) Vintage earrings with imitation diamonds. Silver, partially gold-plated; the ear hooks are hallmarked. Length (measured without the hooks) 32.63 mm. 3.7 g. Pair of antique drop earrings, late 18th/early 19th century, with imitation diamonds in various shapes. With long ear hooks; the backs are gold-plated in the style of the period. The ear hooks have been replaced more recently; they likely originally featured a “jour-et-nuit” function (allowing the earrings to be worn short during the day and long in the evening by attaching the lower extensions), though this feature is no longer present due to the new, continuous ear hooks. The imitations used are glass pastes, which enjoyed great popularity after being popularized by the French court jeweler Georg Friedrich Strass (1701–1773). As a fashion trend, they did not necessarily serve solely as a direct substitute for real gemstones, but were in demand due to their novelty. By backing them with silver foil, diamonds—and, with the help of differently colored foils, other gemstones—could be imitated. Due to the manufacturing process, the stones have a black dot in the center when viewed from above. Auction date: Oct. 29, 2026 | estimated 10:00 a.m. (CET) *This is an automatically generated translation from German by deepl.com and should be considered only as an aid—not a legally binding statement regarding the lot’s characteristics. Please note that we can only guarantee the accuracy of the description and condition as provided in the German description.