Love in Miniature

Among the most sought-after keepsakes from the Great War and beyond are sweetheart brooches mounted on tortoiseshell (or horn). These silver or gold-rimmed beauties were the height of fashion between 1914 and the 1920s – and they weren’t cheap. Each one features a unique, hand-engraved regimental cap badge, meaning no two are ever quite the same.

The workmanship is remarkable, likely carried out by skilled watch engravers early in their careers, and many are fully hallmarked and maker-marked. While we now shy away from the thought of using real tortoiseshell, it’s worth remembering these were made well before plastics or nylon became common, when horn buttons were still standard.

Collectors today still prize them, with prices ranging from around £35 for silver examples to £85 in gold, and rarer regiments commanding £125 or more. Whether treasured as family heirlooms or displayed in a collection, they remain a wonderfully personal link to the soldiers and loved ones of over a century ago.