Fine quality Essex Crystal reverse carved intaglio stickpin of a young French Bulldog c.1890. Especially high dome(impossible to avoid reflection in photos!)
The pup is unusually depicted with soft ears and not the characteristic bat ears, but having researched photos of the period some Frenchies do present with soft ears. The fur, eyes and collar and beautifully rendered and the eyes are truly heart melting.
2 cms diameter.
15carat gold setting to original 9carat stickpin.
'Essex crystals' as they are commonly known(a misnomer relating to William Essex,noted painted in enamels at the same time) in fact originated in Belgium in the 1860s attributed to an artist named Emile Marius Pradier.