Featured What material could this be? What’s the thing on the front?

Full of questions this week. It’s Friday!! Yay.
This is has a medium weight about it but kinda feels solid and almost like plastic but not. My first thought is pietra dura but I don’t know why I’ve never had a piece that I know of. Kinda looks like an antique mourning piece but the design on the front throws me off of that direction It certainly is neat. What do y’all think? The screwed in pin mechanism points something out, I’m sure. Just not sure what. It’s not cold like a stone

thanks for any help or laughs!!!

 

Might be bog oak, might also be ebonised wood. The back is 19thC, and I suspect that's a very stylised monogram.

 

Oooh, cool. I just don’t see any letters. Looks geometric or something. @Ownedbybear

 

My first guess would be pressed horn. It was used for Victorian mourning jewelry. The design is just that, probably.

 

I have never heard or pressed horn. I will have to look that up. I was trying to see if I could smell anything in particular but my sniffer is not good. I can rarely ever smell Bakelite.

 

I don't see a monogram. Could be a stylized love knot or just a geometric design.

Debora

 

The outer frame looks like bog oak to me. Having the pin assembly screwed directly into the material is consistent.

The central plaquette I think is a separate piece. Could be bois durci. Whatever it is, that part appears to have been made by being pressed into a mold, not carved.

I see the design as sort of a modernized Celtic knot. A lot of bog oak jewellery comes from Ireland.

 

This is described as a Irish Victorian bog oak brooch. It also has a knotted design.

Debora

 

Sure looks right. Hard to be sure without it in hand.

 

I understand that for sure. My first time encountering this. I am going straight to look it up to soak up what I can about it. It sure feels weird for sure. Ty so much e1


Happy weekend!!!

 

It looks like a bog oak grain.

 

I have not had a chance but I am going to read up on that. Never heard of it before you guys mentioned it. Super cool

 

I’ve got some pressed horn bracelet links somewhere. I’ll try to find them to compare.

 

Bog oak is a sort of precursor to jet, if you like. Much "younger".

 

Similar to this Irish bog oak one, especially the back treatment. https://www.antiques-atlas.com/antique/antique_irish_bog_oak_brooch/as633a119

 

It would not surprise me if bog oak can be soaked, in water or something else, & made slightly squishy so that it could take the impression of a mold applied with pressure. The center panels of OP's & the one at Darkwing's link are not hand carved.

 

Sosmething in my head says these were press moulded.

 

I agree that it looks molded, 'twould be very difficult to carve that diapered/beaded background. Steam, pressure and steel dies are used to press designs into oak furniture, so I assume something similar was used for these. Wiki says bog oak is even more dense.

 

WOW, in looking up 'bog oak', who knew it was that rare! Rarer that diamonds!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

But would dense mean weighty? This is kind of a medium weight but not heavy. It does look like the samples you’ve had me look at. Wild, I’ve never ever seen or heard of it before.