Sentimental Gold And Hair Brooch – Temple Of Love, France, Early 19th Century

Superb oval brooch in 18-carat gold, delicately adorned with a marquetry of hair under domed glass, representing a temple of Love: an altar surmounted by a pierced flaming heart, surrounded by two birds and a small dog.
On the reverse, a dried flower protected under glass.

A sentimental jewel made in France at the beginning of the 19th century.

The choice of iconographic elements is also revealing:

• The altar of Love, an iconographic motif laden with meaning in the romantic and neoclassical imagery of the period;
• The pierced flaming heart, placed in the center of the altar, recalls the ardent passion and the vulnerability inherent in love;
• The dog, an ancient symbol of loyalty, confirms marital or romantic fidelity;
• The birds, often interpreted as messengers or traveling souls, introduce a spiritual dimension;
• The tree, an emblematic figure of life, rootedness and continuity, can evoke the durability of the emotional bond, but also a possible allusion to the tree of knowledge or of life, themes dear to Romanticism.

Weight: 22.8g

Did you know?
Hair marquetry, a meticulous craft that appeared at the end of the 18th century, combines memory and emotion in jewelry that is often funerary or sentimental. The temple of Love, a recurring motif, reflects the Romantic ideal of sacred love, while each iconographic detail carries a deep and codified symbolism.