Featured Gold mourning brooch dated 1819, help with inscription and is it a snake?

This little pin was purchased by my grandmother in England in a charity shop during the 1970s. There are no markings but I assume that it is some form of gold. I read the inscription as:
Mary Chapman
Ob,,16,May,1819
Olb,,47

My assumption is that Mary died on 16 May 1819 at age 47 but I don’t understand the Ob and Olb. Does anyone recognize these abbreviations?

Also, it looks like the glass window is surrounded by a snake?? I have not opened the pin, do you think I should?

Thanks

 

Please don't open it. It is a commemorative or mourning brooch, and it would be gold. The snake stands for eternal life, which in this case poor Mary has in the afterlife.

 

OB is short for "obit" (died) and OLB age at death but not sure what the "L" stands for. Possible an Anglo-Norman/latin word.
Cheers
Stephen

 

The abbreviations are of Latin, without looking up the spelling, obituiat for died and I'd expect something from Aetiat for aged. I cannot make out your inscription to see if you have possibly misread it.

 

I got this from https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/obit

From Anglo-Norman obit, Middle French obit, and their source, Latin obitus (“going down; death”), from obīre (“to go down, to die”).

and this from https://www.geni.com/projects/Abbreviations-Acronyms-for-Genealogy-The-Accepted/3096

ob obit, deceased, inf—obit infantia (died in infancy) obiit

 

I agree, do not open it! You might disturb the way the hair is sitting there nicely coiled/ wouldn't want any loose hairs falling out!

 

The hinge looks a bit later than that, but the script is right for the early 19th. Lovely little mourning brooch, that.

 

The tube hinge was already used during that time, and the convex back is also early.

 

Thanks so much, everyone!

The pin is quite small, approximately 3/4” across.
Does it appear contemporary to 1819?
I will NOT open it.

 

What a lovely little thing.

Debora

 

Thanks, learned something new again!

Perhaps what I read as Olb,,47 is actually At,,47.

 

Oh, WOW, thank you so much! I LOVE personalizing the piece, it means so much more.
On the previous page, is the heading:
THE MONUMENTAL INSCRIPTIONS OF HOLT, CO. WILTS.

 

And this will be the church: http://stkatharinesholt.org.uk/

http://www.bradfordonavonmuseum.co.uk/holt-church

Your Mary is buried somewhere in that graveyard.

And let's see if we can find her.

https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/2273286/holt-cemetery

 

Any Jewelry's early response is of course correct, 'though technically the snake is an ourobouros (or ouroboros), a snake or dragon swallowing its own tail, thus symbolizing eternity or eternal life.

 

Very nice little mourning piece!
Usually the age of death is preceded by AET, "aetatis" for years or age

Just found this great site about mourning jewellery (another of my collecting interests...)
https://artofmourning.com/?doing_wp_cron=1543690033.4005329608917236328125

 

Think the tricky bit is that it has been written as Æt. The orientation of the inscription interests me. Most women are right handed; most right handed persons would wear this brooch the other way up. A left handed or inattentive engraver, perhaps.

 

Thank you, I'm enjoying looking through that website!
HERE is an early 19th century brooch with a very similar snake. It is attributed to approximately 1820. Alas, mine doesn't have jewels like this one does!