Kitschy-Kitschy-Coo - Suffragettes, Hatchets & Rhinestones

Suffragettes, Hatchets & Rhinestones

Not all of political collectibles require getting into bed with the likes of Nixon or other Presidents.

There are other issues that defined the times, the climates in which men (and a few women) ran for public office. Which is good, for a feminist.

For serious, historical, cultural movement value; there are interesting items like vintage Women’s Lib buttons, suffrage signs, autographed photos, & even Geraldine Ferraro Paper Dolls.

But this is also where the girly items are... Jewelry.

And I don’t just mean new items like watches with the faces of legendary leading ladies of the political pool, authors, and Rosie the Riveter. I mean real jewelry, with authentic vintage style as well as historical merit.

Oh, yes, my fellow glam lovers, there are pretty, glittery, shiny political collectibles too!

I ‘Like Ike‘ if he is sparkly!

Much like the standard, traditional pins & buttons, jewelry was worn to show support for candidates. Obviously, any fine lady would prefer to risk putting a pair of tiny holes in her fashions *if* it was an item as attractive as the ensemble.

Pins with names and slogans spelled out in rhinestones are the most common forms, and I think they are still quite fetching. (Hey, the sparkles still ’work’ and what’s wrong with a little nostalgia?) Since most of these are mainly twentieth century items, and therefore rather ’common’ (though I must admit, I don’t see them worn as much as I’d like!), these pins are not that expensive.

Political items from the 1960’s and up are much more common, and therefore less expensive. But still, those items are gaining in popularity.

More rare are items regarding older candidates, but even some more ’modern’ candidates have larger price tags (think Kennedy - Heck, if it was worn by a Kennedy, or sneezed on by a Kennedy... But ‘that *snot* glamorous‘ *giggle*)

Some of the less common, but very interesting jewelry items are based on specific leaders & movements that were neither Democratic nor Republican.

Close up belowItems that continue to carry a torch for causes of long ago, even if they no longer exist, are near & dear to some. Others are nifty for their historical value, or the personalities involved, even if one no longer supports the original cause.

One of these for me, is the Carry A. Nation hatchet stick pin.

Carry Nation was one of the leaders of the temperance movement, which you know I am not exactly a fan of, but these hatchet pins fascinate me .

Carry A Nation Hatchet PinCarry herself is a study in the past that alone warrants some scrutiny. ‘Not a strong child,’ she spent much of her time reading the Bible. She would marry, divorce, & later after viewing her work as a teacher was ‘unsuccessful,’ she decided her ‘best chance for making a living’ would be to marry again -- This time, a minister (not a drunken young doctor like the first one). As a result of this 'religion,' Carry flet called upon by God & went a lecturin' against the vices of tobacco and liquor - making saloons a major target.

Temperance was in place, but it was not always enforced. So on June 1, 1900, she smashed her first saloon. Thus, hatchet pins were sold to supporters to raise funds for the cause. (Incidentally, Carry died alone & virtually penniless - look at the links below for more on Carry, who "Hath Done What She Could.")

Since I am not as alone in my crazy interest in Carry, or alone in my fascination with such historical movements & figures, political items such as this are highly sought after, despite their less than aesthetic appeal.

Pretty as a picture political brooch, William Henry Harrison, 1840Unlike the simple hatchet pins, there are other lovely political jewelry items that are much more ornate.

Two very pretty & extremely rare, and so, very costly, forms of jewelry are brooches. Sulfide & cameo brooches, small metal-framed pictures, no more than an inch and a half square, with cameos of candidates or with hand-painted scenes, were used mainly between 1820 and 1850.

Age alone makes them rare, but I think the beauty adds to the prices as well.

But of all the girly political items, my favorites are the Suffrage Jewelry pieces.

Suffrage JewelryAs a proud feminist, the suffrage movement is near & dear, and as a lover of glam, jewelry with stones, especially sparkly stones, appeals to me.

There are, of course, many different types of suffrage items, and the jewelry itself varies. This is in large part due to the many suffrage organizations. In both England and America, there was never one official suffrage organization—there were many.

This is partly to ’blame’ for the many different stories & myths regarding suffrage jewelry.

One of the myths is that these jewelry items served as a "secret color code" among women to indicate that they supported the movement but were "afraid" to reveal their sympathies to their husbands and sons.

A romantic notion, yes, but inaccurate.

Again, with so many groups, there was no ‘agreed upon color scheme.’

While many folks, including uneducated sellers of such proclaimed items, believe & insist that the official colors of the suffrage movement were green, white, and purple (or violet), it simply isn’t true.

Suffragette JewelryIt was in fact very popular for the jewelry of the time (Edwardian) to be adorned with amethysts, pearls, and demantoid garnets or emeralds - which easily accounts for the colors, yet there was no 'global suffrage color secret,' let alone, worn in secrecy.

Can you imagine leaders like Katharine Houghton Hepburn, Katharine Hepburn's mother & president of the Connecticut Women Suffrage Association, even suggesting such a mousy attitude?!

No. The opposite was true: the women who supported the suffrage movement were ‘loud & proud.’

If you don’t believe me, perhaps you will believe the words of Mrs. Pethick-Lawrence, treasurer and co-editor of the weekly newspaper Votes for Women. In the spring 1908 issue of that paper, she explained the symbolism of the colors used by the most prominent suffrage group in England, the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU):

(Repeat after me: "colors & reasoning of ONE such group!")

"Purple as everyone knows is the royal colour. It stands for the royal blood that flows in the veins of every suffragette, the instinct of freedom and dignity...white stands for purity in private and public life...green is the colour of hope and the emblem of spring."

"The colours enable us to make that appeal to the eye which is so irresistible. The result of our processions is that this movement becomes identified in the mind of the onlooker with colour, gay sound, movement, and beauty."

Again, jewelry in this purple, white & green color scheme is gorgeous, and if authentic antique pieces, even more so desirable, at least to me, but the color alone does not mean it is ‘suffragette.’

(If you are interested in buying or collecting such items, please look at the link below, which details accuracies in suffrage jewelry. It is better to be safe than sorry, even if the article seems to ‘scare you off’ of an auction or purchase. It may even make the ability to find authentic suffrage jewelry items a daunting task - but take heart! It also means that while others are scrambling & bidding up ‘fakes’ or those items in purple, white & green only, you may have better luck on jewelry & memorabilia with other colors!)

My only final thoughts on collectible vintage & antique political jewelry is that it is a darn shame there is nothing like it any more -- Parties, campaigns & politicians today opt for more disposable, less genuine items...

Perhaps that will make them more rare for the future collector. But I worry that they will feel we have no taste... Or at least no taste for 'real jewelry' and only 'liked' the plastic & metal pin-back buttons.

To think some future person could think that I, GlamKitty, had no desire for a rhinestone Kerry button!

Article by Pop_Tart



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