Myths & Legends of the Emerald - The Helyar Pendant

You might call it that, but it's not a charm. It's a very important symbol and a dangerous symbol for the family that had it. This Hellier jewel, so phenomenal that it survived during the time when it had a secret compartment. It still has a secret compartment that you can lift and see a portrait of Charles I. This would mean that right underneath this beautiful bezel set cabochon emerald is hidden a portrait that's extremely dangerous unless it was shown in front of other royalists. Charles I had his head cut off and it was a time when this was a sacred symbol but also a very, very dangerous symbol. Set in exquisite jewelry, almost boldly hiding in plain sight. Because here is an exquisite jewel, the back of it is enamel and a beautiful natural pearl dangling from it. It's amazing how rare it is to find jewelry that makes it. Everything in history is against jewelry making it. With jewels, we have art that's made with the most expensive things on earth. Therefore, the art has so much less chance to survive. Wars, taxes, inheritance, change in style, remounting because the daughter or the son or the granddaughter or the daughter-in-law wants a different style, pledging the stones for debts, theft. Nowadays, we have taxes and divorce. There's every reason for a jewel to not survive generation after generation. A few of them survive actually. And this one had political danger attached to it, which means probably that it was all the more treasured and preserved for very specific emotional reasons. Don't you think? I think so.