A two pronged faux tortoiseshell hair accessory with Toledo or Damascene work heading

 

CONDITION: good vintage condition with expected wear to metal

 

SIZE: 4 ins h x 2 ins w (10 x 5 cm)

 

APPROXIMATE DATE: 1890s – 1910s

 

MATERIALS: celluloid, metal

 

DESCRIPTION:

The design of this two pronged hair comb or hair pin is typical of the smaller and lighter hair accessories which were popular in the late Victorian and Edwardian periods. It is made in celluloid faux tortoiseshell with a heading that is decorated with the metallic technique known as Damascene work.

Hair pins like this are characteristically made in one solid piece of the material, which might be horn, tortoiseshell, or some synthetic like celluloid. They usually have only one or two tines and their top or heading in a simple shape such as a horseshoe or rectangle, sometimes with the addition of rhinestones or a little openwork decoration.

 

Combs such as there were made in pairs and sets of four and were worn throughout the 19^th and early 20^th century. They could perform both an ornamental and a useful function, being used to hold the elaborate coiffures of the day in place as well as to adorn the hair. The plainer ones are more likely to have been used simply to hold the style.