The antique jewelry piece is spectacular. According to the jewelry expert is a round Victorian diamond ring with a fascinating allure of mystery to it. Apparently, my great-grandmother came to America from England with very few possessions, that ring included. It then passed on to my grandmother who then passed it on to my mother who passed it on to me, along with some vintage jewelry pieces and a pair of gold earrings that she cared for very much.
My mother passed away a month ago and left me a lot of beautiful memories that I will always cherish. She also left my sister and me her jewelry collection, which was one of her most meaningful belongings. I have to be honest, I don’t know a lot about jewelry but that doesn’t keep me from witnessing the enchanting aura antique rings possess, especially that ring.
I told my sister I wanted to do something special to remember her, so we decided to create a little photo album with pictures of her. We went up to the attic and started looking for images that could have any type of significance. The same significance that her antique jewelry collection has.
We managed to find some photos of her, but what we found later really caught our attention. In a little drawer of a jewelry box there was a letter written in 1871 by Josephine Wickham, our great grandmother. The envelope truly showed the pass of time and the paper was extremely delicate, but the handwriting was very clear.
The letter was addressed to our grandmother, Elizabeth Warren. In it, Josephine describes the love and devotion that she has for her and her family and tells the story of how she became entangled with the mysterious Victorian ring.
Josephine’s mother, Abigail, was a maid for a very rich noble couple in Victorian England. He was a duke in Worcester and she was a noblewoman who loved horses, dresses and especially Jewelry. Her name was Jane.
Abigail was a kind woman who took very good care of the couple’s estate, but especially of their children, which made her beloved by the couple. Victoria was, according to the letter, a decent woman who had mental problems which made her unstable and used alcohol to cure her pain. Abigail was always there to protect the kids. Josephine grew up with them and was also very fond of Jane, despite her problems.
The Duke faced very serious financial problems so he had to sell all of his estate, and Victoria had to sell her belongings. But in a moment of sanity, she kept one piece, her favorite one and gave it to Abigail as a thank you for everything. In the end, the Duke and Victoria moved to London but Abigail and Josephine tried their luck in the new land, with the round Victorian diamond ring.
We had the piece appraised and it is apparently very valuable. But to us, it has a deeper meaning. It is a symbol of love and family.