The Chain

I won this Victorian long guard chain in the same auction as the funky Seiko watch that I posted about last week. My rationale had been to sell the chain to pay for the watch. Like so many of my get-rich-quick schemes, there were a couple of flaws in the plan. The biggest problem is that the cute little floral slide is quite slippery. It would seem that the bit of cork that’s usually on the inside of the slide to help it grip the chain is missing. If you loop the chain (as pictured above) it looks okay, but does not function as a long guard should—they were designed to hold watches on dog clips and were originally worn with the chain tucked into a woman’s belt.

These chains were sometimes up to 64 inches (hence the descriptor “long guard.” They were also used to suspend fur muffs.

To get back to this piece of jewelry, the second problem with it is that I have grown quite fond of it. The slide with its turquoise studded bloom is so pretty. And the links are daintier than the long guard that my little pendant watch hangs from.

I could keep this new one and sell the old chain, That would be the sensible thing. But I also had the thought that I could just but another pendant watch. Or maybe a nice medallion.

I am doomed.