Art Deco Gold Fill Watch Chain 13.5"

A gorgeous and versatile chain, this piece comes to us from the R. F. Simmons Company, renowned for their chains, and founded in Attleboro, Massachusetts in 1885. Designed as a watch chain, the piece has a dogclip closure at one end and an antique-style spring ring at the other. These older spring rings can be a surprise at first for those only familiar with contemporary ones: there is no little lever to grip, and the portion that locks into the tube is rather short - when using this clasp, you'll want to grip the little ridge and make sure that when you close it, the ring is properly aligned and fully closed.

The chain itself is rather fancy - textured links are multiply looped, creating a cascading twist like a modern Singapore chain; there is lovely depth to the chain as a result, and along with the patina on the gold fill creates a rich and engaging look. At a length of 13.5", it can easily be worn as a choker, doubled up as a bracelet, or as a chain to hold a pocket watch or charms and fobs as originally intended.

For those not as familiar with the term "gold fill," it's a type of jewelry created when a layer of gold is mechanically (often through pressure) bonded to a base layer that is typically either silver or base (non-precious) metal. Gold fill differs from gold plating both in the thickness of the gold layer and the method and type of bond, and the resulting material lasts much longer than gold plating. Gold fill is common from the late Victorian period on, and the wear to the metal more closely resembles the wear and patina on old low-karat gold than it does newer solid or plated gold.

Details:
• Gold Fill and marked for American jewellers Simmons (R. F. Simmons Co.)
• 13.5" long including clasps
• 6.7g