Stick Pin thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Jewellery, Rooms 91, The William and Judith Bollinger Gallery

Stick Pin

1867 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Made by Auguste-Germain Cadet-Picard, who made and showed electrical pins invented by Trouvé at the Paris 1867 Exhibition. At this exhibition, jewels with moving parts powered by electricity attracted a lot of attention.

The jewel contains electric terminals so that, when connected to a battery concealed in the wearer's pocket, the eyes roll and the jaws snap.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Gold and enamel with diamond sparks
Brief description
Stick pin in the form of a skull, gold and enamel with diamond sparks, containing electric terminals that can animate the skull's eyes and jaw, mark of Auguste-Germain Cadet-Picard, France about 1867
Physical description
Stick pin in the form of a skull, gold and enamel with diamond sparks. The jewel contains electric terminals so that, when connected to a battery concealed in the wearer's pocket, the eyes roll and the jaws snap.
Dimensions
  • Height: 9.2cm
  • Width: 1.5cm
  • Depth: 1.6cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • Eagle's' head (Paris restricted warranty mark used from 1847 on pin shaft)
  • "Picard" (Mark of Auguste-Germain Cadet-Picard on pin shaft)
  • "BREVETE SGDG (on pin shaft)
  • DEPOSE (on pin shaft)
Object history
Paris restricted warranty mark used from 1847. Mark of Auguste-Germain Cadet-Picard, who made and showed electrical pins invented by Trouvé at the Paris 1867 Exhibition. The jewel contains electric terminals so that, when connected to a battery concealed in the wearer's pocket, the eyes roll and the jaws snap.
Subject depicted
Summary
Made by Auguste-Germain Cadet-Picard, who made and showed electrical pins invented by Trouvé at the Paris 1867 Exhibition. At this exhibition, jewels with moving parts powered by electricity attracted a lot of attention.

The jewel contains electric terminals so that, when connected to a battery concealed in the wearer's pocket, the eyes roll and the jaws snap.
Collection
Accession number
M.121-1984

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Record createdAugust 26, 2005
Record URL
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