Monday, June 8, 2026

A Magical Mystery. At Least For Me


When I was a little girl, I loved going through my mother's jewelry box. There were, almost by very definition, treasures in it. It was made of wood and the craftsmen ship seemed very fine and of course the little drawers were velvet lined. I swear to you I can still hear the sound those drawers made when they were pulled out. 

There were two pieces of jewelry in the box which I especially loved. 

One was a pin, or a brooch, I guess, which Mother wore when she was going out fancy. Which didn't happen very often. But when she did she would always wear this and I was certain she was the most beautiful woman in the world.


I was also certain that those gorgeous roses trapped in Lucite were magical. How could they not be?
I'm pretty sure those pins were quite popular in the mid to late fifties. I remember other women wearing similar ones and they're hardly worth the effort to order one online. The market is probably flooded. 
But anyway, I kept that particular piece of jewelry because it was a little bit of magic from my childhood and I remembered it so clearly. 

The other piece of jewelry in the box was a bracelet. The catch on it was broken and I never once saw Mother wear it. When I'd ask her about it she sort of brushed me off. I don't think she valued it much or perhaps she had a bad association with it. Who knows? 
But I thought it was about the coolest, most enchanting thing on earth. I can remember looking and looking at that bracelet, trying to figure it out. Who did the faces on it belong to and why was it so different from any other jewelry that I saw other women wearing? This is what it looked like, only without a clasp.


The faces are quite large.


As you can see. 
That's my wonky wrist, by the way. The one I broke when I was seventeen. It has an odd bump on it and its mobility is somewhat limited. Not much. It's my bracelet-wearing wrist.

Anyway when my mother died, I knew I wanted that bracelet and I wanted it bad. My three other siblings are brothers so they didn't want it. I don't think any of them had spent much time going through our mother's jewelry box.
So, I took possession of it and took it to a jeweler to get a clasp put on it which they did and I asked them if it was silver. They said something like, "Silver coated". I knew it had silver in it or on it because it tarnishes and comes back bright and shiny if I give it a good cleaning with a silver-polishing cloth and I accepted what the jeweler I'd spoken to said and did not love the bracelet one bit less.

I've google-lensed it before but never learned anything definite about it, not even the identity of whatever god or, well, guy those links were representing. I always thought they were Bacchus, that bad boy who was god of wine and inebriation and agriculture but I didn't spend a lot of time worrying about it. To me, one more mystery about this mysterious bracelet was to be expected. 
For some reason though, this evening I really looked for any kind of marking on the backs of the links. I couldn't find a darn thing on any of the three Baachus images, if indeed that's who it is, but there are two smaller faces or masks between the larger ones which are all identical. Here's what the little guys look like.


I have no idea who these cuties are. None at all. 
BUT on the backs of both of them I found this.

Obviously, I can clearly make out the 800 marking but have zero clue about the other one which looks as if it had been polished away. 

Here's the back of the other small link.

Any suggestions? 

I am clueless which is not unusual but in this instance, I'd really be interested in getting some information. 

Since I could see the "800" marking quite well, I looked it up and that indicates the piece is indeed silver, but a silver used more frequently in the late 19th century to the early 20th century. The 800 indicates that it is 80% silver whereas we mostly see 925 silver markings, which means that piece is what we call sterling silver and it is (surprise, surprise!) 92.5% silver. 
The 800 marking does not mean the piece is less valuable unless what you're looking to do with it is to melt it down and sell it for the value of the silver. It makes a more sturdy piece and is used in silver flatware and also jewelry. And it does indicate a vintage piece. 

Google lens has advised me that the guy on the big links could be the Green Man, Baachus, or your run-of-the-mill party guy satyr. I am more inclined to believe it's Green Man or Bacchus. 
Whoever it is appears to be a good time god. 
And also, whoever it is, I am as intrigued and curious about the bracelet his visage adorns as I was as a child. And I would really love to know how it came to be in my mother's jewelry box.

And that's about it for me today. I went to town to do the weekly shopping. I have a story involving THE HEARING AIDS which ended (so far) with my husband telling me he still loves me, and we just got enough rain to wet the ground and make it smell really, really good here. Also, I am watching Hawk who has flown in and perched on the fence for reasons unknown to me. The crows are NOT happy about this and are cawing out warning calls. 

Tomorrow makes fifty years ago that I began in labor with Hank. 
And his birthday is Wednesday. 
Do the math. 
But. I can still hardly talk about his birth and how I felt my heart expand to a size I did not know possible when I first held him in my arms without crying. 
I learned what love was then. As I have always said, my kids have been and are my best teachers and I was so fortunate as to have Hank be my first one. 

Happy night before you were born, my love, my beautiful red-headed baby! 

Always...Mama






35 comments:

  1. I was going to tell you it is the Green Man. It symbolizes Rebirth and the Harmony of what is Wild in Nature with Humanity, it is prominent in Gaelic Culture. My Mom was Welsh and the Welsh and the Irish have the Green Man on many things. My Mom had an awesome collection of clip on Earrings, she didn't get her Ears Pierced until she was a Senior. I still have many of those Unusual Earrings she Collected from all over the World.

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    1. I agree that it very well could be Green Man but if you look up Bacchus and a satyr, it could well be those too.
      Do you ever wear any of your mother's earrings?

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  2. That's a very interesting bracelet and I agree it probably is Bacchus. My mum's "jewellery" was all fake, known as costume pieces and cheap to buy. All her brooches had "stones" set in them and every single one had one stone missing. I kept some of them to pass on to a grand daughter, but gave many pieces to the local thrift shop, keeping just a few for myself but I never wear them.

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    1. Most of my mother's jewelry was costume until she married the child abuser who somehow believed that if he gave her nice jewelry, she'd ignore his complete shitheadedness.
      OH! She did have a beautiful engagement ring from my bio father but I never saw it after she divorced him. She gave it to my brother when he got married to give to his wife.

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  3. Just yesterday I wore my mother’s moonstone and garnet bracelet. I believe, since she is wearing it in the photos taken of her with the newborn me to send to my father then in England with the Eighth Air Force, that it’s a gift he bought before being ordered overseas and left to be given to her after the birth of their January (birthstone garnet) baby. Margaret

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    1. What a very beautiful memento with a very beautiful story behind it. I'm so glad you still have it.

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  4. Very cool bracelet! And I read your post with Maurice from yesterday. So adorable. I was thinking maybe she’s just getting older and sweeter? My cat is getting more leachy by the day and she’s about 13. It’s constant. I don’t know about Maurice-just a thought. Also, yesterday, Maggie’s hair! So precious!. -Nicol

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    1. Nope. This is exactly how Maurice has always been. Well, except for when she first moved in. She was so sweet for a little while. Until she figured out that we weren't going to kick her out, I guess. She has always slept with me on and off and I remember when I broke my ribs she stuck right by me while I was healing.
      Maggie was a 100% pure cherub, wasn't she?

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  5. My mum didn't have much in the way of jewelry either and I don't know what happened to it, probably spread out among sisters and nieces.

    I just cut the grass. Everything is green and the flowers are blooming. Spring has finally arrived in the North:)

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    1. I hope it doesn't get too hot for you this summer. I know it does sometimes.

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  6. Very, very special bracelet....and my money is on Steve Reed to perfectly identify it....he is skilled at that.............
    Susan m

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  7. 800 silver is good stuff, just not the highest level you could get. I used to teach people how to understand precious metal markings.

    The female head looks like Medusa to me. And yes, that's most probably the Green Man. None of which matters as much as your treasuring the bracelet mainly because it was your mom's.

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    1. The jeweler who told me that the bracelet wasn't silver should have taken a course from you on how to understand metal markings.
      Yep. That could well be Medusa. And the Green Man. But who knows?
      I don't really treasure the bracelet because it was my mother's. I don't have that sort of feeling about her memory. I find it interesting that she did indeed own it and now I do. Plus, she never ever once wore it because the clasp was broken and I think if she'd cared enough about it, she would have gotten it fixed.

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  8. Two fascinating pieces. My aunt had a ton of that rose jewelry. She collected it but never wore it. I love the bracelet. Hope you learn more as a result of this post.

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    1. So far, I haven't learned anything else. If I get some time I'll probably try to do some more searching. Or...I could take it to a good jeweler who knows his stuff having sold vintage and estate jewelry for decades.

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  9. Happy birthday to Hank. My son turns 50 next week.

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  10. Having your mother's jewelry to look at and wear must bring back many memories. I have a few pieces from my mother too and every time I wear a piece, I recall a special occasion when my mother wore the jewelry.
    The bracelet must have a story. Maybe it was a gift? Maybe she saw it in a shop and loved it immediately.

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    1. The memories I have of my mother and jewelry are pretty much non-existent. She didn't wear a great deal of it. The rose pin, yes. But not after the early sixties, I think. And I'm sorry to say this but my memories in general of my childhood are not good at all except for when I was outside in Roseland, in the woods or on the river.
      If the bracelet had a story, I don't think it was a good one. Like I said, whenever I asked her about it, she'd just brush me off. Also, she didn't have the money to have bought a piece of jewelry at that time in her life. Plus- if she'd really cared about it, she would have gotten the clasp fixed.

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  11. Happy Son's Birthday to you - I always think mothers should be celebrated on the day they gave the gift of life! Great bracelet, I wonder if it gives the wearer "green fingers" type plant nurturing skills?

    Ceci

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    1. We always say Happy Birthday to the kids here and Happy Birth Day to the mamas.
      Hmmm... No idea about the plant nurturing skills properties of the bracelet.

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  12. Yes! happy Hank day! so glad he got born! Happy Mama Hank Day to you. Women are certainly amazing- forming and birthing an entire human being such as Hank.
    I love both of your jewelry pieces from the jewrly chest of your Mother. Glad that you kept them! Most of my Mother's went into a yard sale that my Sister in law decided was a good idea. Dammit!

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    1. I know! Women create life and then bring it to this place and THEN we are able to nourish it with nothing but our bodies for a long time. I will never cease being amazed.
      I'd be really pissed if I had a sister-in-law who did that.

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  13. I love a good mystery! It's interesting that uploading the images into Google produces no exact online matches (except your blog). In other words, this doesn't seem to be a widely mass-produced piece, because then there would be other matching pieces out there. I see lots of similar ones but nothing that looks exactly like that.

    The best guess I can come up with for the stamp is Garibaldi. And that really IS just a guess. Googling that name doesn't give me much so it may not be right.

    I have a pin of my mother's too, even though I am not likely to ever wear it. LOL

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    1. One suggestion I got a few times was for an Italian jewelry company called Buccellati. They have some vintage pieces that resemble the bracelet and also the time line is about right for when they were making jewelry of 800 silver. But who knows?
      I can definitely see how you could come up with the name "Garibaldi" for the stamp. Thanks, Steve.
      Hey! You can darn well wear your mother's pin! Or her pearls, for that matter. Although you probably don't have those. If she had any.

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    2. Google also gives me the names Fratelli Peruzzi or Fratelli Coppini.

      You might be onto something with Buccellati. As you said, he does use similar (but not quite identical) masks in his designs. Did you see this one?
      https://www.ebay.com/itm/226915619727

      I wonder if it's a Buccellati imitator. Anyway we do seem to have an Italian theme going on here!

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  14. Very cool bracelet. My mother had a lot of jewelry but there were two pieces that I always loved but only ended up with one of them. The one I ended up with is a diamond crescent moon shaped pendant which I wore constantly for many years until the chain broke. I still have it on a longer chain but rarely wear it these days. The other was a very fancy garnet necklace which I adored but alas it went to my brother's wife because his middle name is Garnet (a family name as I recall). I doubt she has ever worn it.

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    1. I guess it would be rude to ask your brother's wife if you could take custody of the garnet necklace since she never wears it. But hey- nothing ventured, nothing gained. Your crescent moon pendant sounds beautiful.

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  15. It's nice you have some jewelry of your Mom's to treasure. Who will get it next? ;)

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    1. Well, I mostly treasure this bracelet because it was such a magical thing to me as a child. And it still is.

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  16. Hi Mary. I’m a constant reader and fan of your blog! Just wondering about the bracelet having a Greek theme…so …. what about Poseidon for the large faces? Moyra in New Zealand

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    1. I can definitely see that! Thanks, Moyra. And thanks for reading here and your kind words.

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