Compared to most items of jewellery which are purely ornamental, the humble brooch was first created thousands of years ago as a practical item to hold a person’s clothes together. Since that time it has been designed into an endless array of forms and materials, some more novel than others. Although brooches today have largely lost their practical purpose, they remain small statements worn on our chest which can add a splash of colour or character to the wearer. Antique and Vintage brooches remind us of a time when these small pieces of jewellery were crucial to our everyday wear. As such one finds not only fun novelty pieces, but extremely fine examples in gold and silver. Often these better-quality items will be accented with diamonds or pearls which showed off the skill of the maker.
As items which can be worn and admired on a daily basis, antique and vintage brooches are a great addition to any jewellery collection. At LoveAntiques we have a fine selection of quality Antique and Vintage brooches.
Aion Jewellery
An Art Deco Silver & Marcasite Dress Clip
£ 55
Celtic Heritage
Scottish Brooch Silver Plated, Vintage, Very Large
£ 110
£ 38
£ 155
£ 40
Celtic Heritage
Charles Rennie Macintosh Design Sterling Silver Rose Brooch
£ 25
Celtic Heritage
Scottish Lion Brooch, Sterling Silver, Vintage 1950s
£ 40
Celtic Heritage
Celtic Knot Brooch, Sterling Silver, Vintage
£ 20
Celtic Heritage
Scottish Sterling Silver Axe Brooch, Vintage
£ 25
Celtic Heritage
Celtic Knot Brooch, Sterling Silver, Vintage
£ 20
£ 14,950
£ 3,450
£ 1,795
Antique 4.10ct Aquamarine & Seed Pearl 15ct Yellow Gold Pendant / Brooch c.1880
£ 1,795
AC Silver
Andrew Cox Antiques
Gorgeous Charles Horner Silver & Amethyst Brooch
£ 110
Celtic Heritage
Vintage 1930s Sterling Silver "Tara" Style Brooch
£ 35
£ 45
Celtic Heritage
Irish Silver "Children of Lir" or 4 Swan's Brooch
£ 50
£ 185
Celtic Heritage
Scottish Celtic Style War Axe Brooch 1950s/1960s
£ 32
Celtic Heritage
Sterling Silver Scottish Highlands Sword & Targe Brooch
£ 30
Celtic Heritage
Ola Marie Gorie, Puffin Brooch, Sterling Silver, Vintage
£ 55
Celtic Heritage
Celtic Knot Sterling Silver Brooch, Vintage
£ 20
Celtic Heritage
Irish Sterling Silver Brooch - Dublin 1967 - Vintage
£ 55
Celtic Heritage
Gaelic Sterling Silver Penannular Brooch - Very Small
£ 45
£ 1,495
Digby Antiques (Wiltshire)
Mexican Silver Bird Brooch - Rafael Melendez
£ 120
£ 6,950
Doubloon
Silver Greyhound Brooch
£ 65
Doubloon
Amethyst & Pearl Brooch
£ 145
FB Antiques
Antique Platinum Aquamarine & Diamond Brooch
£ 3,950
£ 13,950
Lefays Fine Arts
Carnelian Hardstone Cameo 18ct Gold Brooch of Classical Lady
£ 895
£ 1,095
Celtic Heritage
Sterling Silver Scottish Themed Sgian Dubh Brooch - Antique
£ 30
£ 345
£ 95
World War 1 9ct Gold & Tortoiseshell Sweetheart Brooch - Norfolk Regiment - 1916
£ 95
Century Antiques
£ 89
Antique Latvian Solid Silver Sakta Brooch with Butterscotch Amber Stone c.1950
£ 89
Artsubject
Celtic Heritage
Scottish Ornate Brooch Silver Purple Stone - Hallmarked 1955
£ 55
£ 3,950
£ 40
As a practical way to hold your clothes together brooches have been around since at least the Bronze Age and possibly earlier. Prominently on display, such items quickly became a way to impart social wealth and stature through the choice of materials and design. Often Bronze, Silver or Gold was used as the main material as well as precious and semi-precious stones. As fashions changed so too did the look and style of the brooches. Today we no longer need such items for very practical purposes, but still enjoy them for their aesthetic appeal.
When examining the authenticity of vintage brooches, you’ll want to look at the small details for clues of manufacturing date. Closely examining the clasps and hinges of antique and vintage brooches will help identify what specific period in time they were most popular in. If they were by a quality maker or made of solid Silver or Gold then there may be hallmarks present as well. Different eras have different styles of jewellery and stone cuts.
Vintage brooches can be valuable if either they were made of precious metal and stones or if they were made by famous designers. Indeed even vintage costume jewellery by the big name Couturiers such as Dior or Yves Saint Laurent can be worth considerable sums now. Because makers do not have to hallmark smaller pieces of gold or silver jewellery below 8 grams it is common for there to be no marks so it is worth taking your brooch to a jeweller to get checked. While most vintage costume jewellery was cheaper when new and remains cheap today, much still has a value for people who just enjoy wearing these fun designs from the past.