Featured Black Translucent Stone

Hello. My mother passed this piece to me and said it was my “great great great grandfathers.” One cannot be certain, although I remember this from a child so certainly it has some type of age. I’m very interested in the stone / glass. Very black unless a light is behind it, where it becomes orange by translucence. Anyone have any considerations or thoughts?

 

following

 

It appears to be a watch fob. Intaglio. Does it rotate? Or is it fixed? Any markings? What year was your g-g-g-grandfather born?

Debora

 

This is black onyx. I think the picture is Hermes.

 

I think it is most likely a very dark carnelian, if it were black onyx I would expect more of a purple/green tone with the translucency.

 

Sardonyx?
https://www.etsy.com/listing/808387...ik=dj0yJnU9UW91Q3BCRXVPOUZFbS0xaDJzX293ZExmMU

 

Sardonyx is banded, unbanded sardonyx is carnelian - part of the giant mess that is naming conventions for quartz!

 

Could be Hermes I suppose with a rather abstract helmet. @Bronwen would know.

Debora

 

It is sard or glass meant to look like sard. If the metal is not solid gold, it is probably glass. The figure is Ceres. As has already been pointed out, it is a watch fob.

 

Wow thank you everyone. By the way, I messaged Preston at cameojewelry.com and he replied! He wrote, "Its intaglio (carved from the rear) looks like glass its about 100 years old about $100"

 

This is what Preston said? In gem engraving 'intaglio' is the opposite of cameo, which produces a design in relief above the background surface. Intaglio is etched down into the surface. Most of the time they are worn with the engraved side as the obverse. When the intaglio is set in a way that makes it clear the engraving is the reverse, it is commonly called reverse carved.