C. 1879. A beautiful Victorian sterling silver collar necklace. The necklace is wonderfully versatile and double-sided, featuring a finely engraved floral motif on one side and a simple, plain finish on the other. This style of collar necklace is traditionally called a "book-chain," so named because the flat, rectangular links mimic the layered look of folded book pages.

The chain has a generous length of 19 inches, allowing it to be styled as a standalone strand or used to hang a locket or pendant using the spring ring. What makes this piece particularly nice is the presence of its original English design registration mark. Between 1842 and 1883, the British Patent Office issued these distinctive diamond-shaped "kite marks" to copyright a design, identify the material, and record the exact date of registration.

The center of the diamond features a stylized "Rd," the abbreviation for "Registered." Decoding the rest of the mark reveals "I" for the metal class, "Y" for the year 1879, "D" for the month of September, "19" for the day, and a "5" in the left corner for the internal Patent Office batch number—dating the design's official registration to September 19th, 1879.

The chain lays beautifully and comfortably around the neckline. The spring ring clasp appears to be a later addition, which is common for pieces of this age. Overall, this necklace is in excellent antique condition, complete with a natural silver patina.

Length: Approximately 19 inches
Width: Approximately 0.70 inches
Weight: 42.12 grams