Victorian diamond drop earrings. A matching pair, each set with a cushion shape old mine diamond in an open back claw setting, two in total with a combined weight of 1.60 carats, to an elegant drop design featuring curving claws, an intricately pierced gallery and circular open backholing, fitted to reverse with a secure hook and clasp, approximately 1.3cm in length. Tested gold, indistinct maker's mark, circa 1890.

By the mid-1800s, the dormouse design, French for “sleeper”, became increasingly popular. Initially designed as a single drop attached to a curving earwire with a simple leverback mechanism, they were very different to the pendant and girandole earrings of the previous decades.

Petite in size, dormeuse earrings were intended to be so comfortable that a lady could wear them during the day and go on to sleep in them, preventing their ear piercing from closing.