Description
Elegant Stylised Milgrain Cat Brooch | Vintage American | 1980s
This rare and substantial brooch, dating to the late 1980s but very much in the Art Deco style, is a fine example of the talent and artistry that existed at the Jonette Jewelry Company. The stylised, flowing, gently convex form captures a sitting cat looking over his shoulder, paw raised and tail swishing, and it showcases the beautiful effects that can be achieved by a skilled jeweller working with pewter. The intricate decoration of sinuous bars and raised dots, likely created using either the milgrain (from the French mille-grain, “a thousand grains”) or granulation technique, creates a striking effect, and there is superb attention to detail: note the flare in the casting of one of the bars to create the impression of the cat’s eye. This elegant and very hard to find vintage piece is presented in a gift box.
The Jonette Jewelry Company is a name well known to collectors of American costume jewellery. Most famous for its range of whimsical pins and brooches, this family-owned business was founded in Rhode Island in the mid-1940s but has its origins in the 1930s firms Providence Jewelry and Lisker & Lisker, which shut down due to wartime shortages of materials. Jonette Jewelry Co. closed in 2006 after 60 years of production, and its designs are now much sought after by vintage collectors. You’ll find more great examples if you explore our full selection of Jonette Jewelry brooches and pins.
Approximate Dimensions: 7.6cm x 3.7cm (at the longest/widest point)
Condition Report: In excellent vintage condition, freshly cleaned and polished by us. Roll-over clasp in good order.
Material: Pewter
Weight: 19.5g
Marks: JJ maker’s mark to rear