The Popularity of Agate Jewellery in 19th-Century Scotland

The fascination with all things Scottish began following George IV's visit to Scotland. This was the first time that a monarch had visited Scotland in almost 200 years. The tour was stage-managed by the novelist Sir Walter Scott, in an effort to revive Scottish cultural pride. It was then Queen Victoria's purchase of the Balmoral Estate in 1852, that further solidified the romanticised image of Scotland and accelerated the popularity of Scottish culture.

Taking cues from the large brooches and pins that were used to fix the fly plaid at the shoulder, Scottish agate jewellery became even more popular during the 19th century, as Scotland’s history and rugged scenery established it as a major tourist destination for the English and Europeans alike.

Initially Scottish agate jewellery was made as functional kilt pins and plaid brooches, set with stones sourced in Scotland from streams and small hill deposits. Important sources included Kinnoull Hill near Perth, Burn Anne near Kilmarnock, the Campsie Hills north of Glasgow, the island of Rum, and the blue-grey agates found at Usan near Montrose.

By 1870 it has been estimated that more than 2,000 people were working as lapidaries, goldsmiths, silversmiths, engravers and stone setters, all making Scottish agate jewellery in Edinburgh’s New Town. This included jewellers such as G & M Chrichton, McKay and Cunningham, Marshall and Sons and Meyer and Mortimer, along with James Muirhead and Sons of Glasgow. Meanwhile in Aberdeen, the jewellers M. Rettie and George Jamieson & Sons made pieces using local dark grey and pink granites from the Correnie and Rubislaw quarries in Aberdeen, and black flecked pink granites from Peterhead on the north east coast of Scotland.

Distinctive Features of Scottish Agate Jewellery

These banded grey and pink agates, onyx, carnelian and moss agates, red and yellow jaspers, bloodstones and pink and grey granites would be perfectly cut to form seamless mosaic like jewels in an expanding range of pieces that included large fly plaid brooches, annular and pendular brooches, clan crests, Orders of the Garter, knots, shells, crosses, Celtic designs, dirks and the heart shaped ‘Luckenbooth’ brooches which were influenced by the booths in St. Giles Kirk on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. As the 19th century progressed, the pieces were often embellished with the addition of traditional Scottish quartzes such as amethysts, citrines and cairngorms.

Craftsmanship and Techniques

The finest pieces of Scottish agate jewellery were mounted in gold by goldsmiths such as G M Crichton. However, the very best silver mounted pieces were also works of art, requiring at least four craftsmen to complete each jewel. The stone cutter would shape and polish each piece so that the jeweller could set each agate into shellac or pitch to create seamless mosaics almost like an 18th century specimen agate box. The agates were then sometimes set onto slate backings, and held by claws and setting edges in geometric patterns, whilst later examples were set into silver with engraved mounts.

Agate Jewellery as Souvenirs and Fashion Statements

The demand for Scottish souvenir jewellery soared, so much so that Birmingham manufacturers like George Unite and Bradford & Co, as well as Ellis and Sons from Exeter, stepped in to meet the demand. They added new types of jewellery such as earrings and cufflinks and introducing novelty type brooches shaped like bagpipes, harps, helmets, anchors and arrows. Due to this newfound popularity, it was also getting more difficult to source agates from Scotland itself, as the traditional mines and quarries were becoming exhausted. As a result, English and Scottish manufacturers started to source agates, amethysts, citrines and smoky quartz from mines in South America, Asia and Africa. They also sourced dyed and polished agates from the world famous gem cutting centre of Idar-Oberstein in Germany. This encouraged the manufacturers to look at more exotic and distinctly non-Scottish materials such as malachite from Siberia to set into this type of jewellery.

Unfortunately, very little Scottish agate jewellery from the 19th century was signed or fully hallmarked, especially by the Edinburgh and Glasgow makers, although we know of their involvement in making Scottish jewellery from the International Exhibition catalogues of 1851, 1862 and 1867. However, Rettie and Jamieson in Aberdeen routinely signed their pieces, as did George Unite from Birmingham and Ellis and Son from Exeter, but the Edinburgh and Glasgow makers did not, as a rule, sign their pieces.

Although not at the forefront of ‘high jewellery’, in recent years striking and colourful Scottish agate jewellery has been highly prized by leading jewellery historians and trend makers. Butler & Wilson from London were large collectors and retailers of Scottish agate jewellery from their beginnings in Antiquarius on the King’s Road in Chelsea in the late 1960s, through to their later shop in the Fulham Road. Scottish agate jewellery was also highly prized and retailed in the 1980s and 1990s by American trend setters such as the Ralph Lauren stores, and New York department stores like Bergdorf Goodman and Barney’s.

Auction Details

Coming up in our Jewellery, Silver, Watches and Luxury Accessories auction, we have a collection of 60 lots of 'Scottish' agate jewellery. This is a timed online auction, ending on Thursday 16 January 2025, from 10.30am GMT

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  • Monday 13 January: 10am-4pm
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