Fine Jewellery, Watches, Silver & Coins 21st February 2024 at 12pm

BRING BACK BR OOCH ES 8 At O’Reilly’s Auction Rooms, we are no strangers to brooches. The pinned pieces have a strong connection with Irish history dating all the way back to the Iron Age. During this period, brooches were used as functional pieces rather than as a fashion statement, though occasionally both form and function came into play. For example, theTara Brooch we all know and love, would have been commissioned for use by a High King of Ireland in the 9th Century AD so that he could fasten his cloak at his shoulder while also empha- sising his status with the ornament of said brooch. Jumping forward a few hundred years, brooches became more associated with specific occasions, as well as primarily being worn by women. As with many jewellery trends, Queen Victoria was instrumental in establishing the idea of mourning brooches in the late 19th century.When Prince Alber t died in 1861, Queen Victoria entered a period of mourning that would last until her own passing in 1901; and she expressed this through mourning brooches as well as cameos that por trayed her late husband. There were however, limitations to the wearing of these brooches. During ‘full mourning’, they were not to be worn, and along with this, they were only worn by those who had the excess financial means to afford such a lavish form of grieving. Lot 4 LIVE AUCTION OF FINE JEWELLERY, WATCHES, SILVER & COINS • WEDNESDAY, 21st FEBRUARY 2024 AT 12PM