18K Gold and Blue John Pendant Necklace

Description

Heading: A Gold and Blue John Pendant Necklace

Description : 18k gold chain with 18k gold mounted Blue John Pendant. To the reverse mother of pearl

Size: Chain length 56cm, drop 37.5cm drop, pendant 10cm with bail and 4cm wide

Weight: The chain 16.2 grams, the pendant 114g

A truly remarkable piece of Blue John jewellery.

Blue John is a banded fluorite found in the vicinity of Castleton, Derbyshire. The origins of the name are uncertain, possibly French or from itinerant Cornish miners, however, the colours within the mineral can be blue, yellow, violet and amethyst banded with white. Indeed some pieces can display a rose like tint. Resources are becoming increasingly scarce. In the late 18th and early 19th century Matthew Boulton the highly regarded silversmith made  large elaborately decorated urns with Blue John and silver ormolu. Large bowls were made for silver epergnes and there are some lavish table tops cut from single pieces. As a native British gemstone it is without equal.

This pendant is backed with mother of pearl to highlight the colours within the stone