Lucy Delius resurrects Victorian watch chains as contemporary jewellery
The London jeweller reimagines gentlemen's accessories from the 1800s as sculptural necklaces, trading utility for pure ornament. Each chain tells the story of its historical inspiration.
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Lucy Delius has turned her eye to the gentleman’s accessory cabinet, mining the Victorian era for a collection of chains that sacrifice none of their historical elegance in their translation to modern dress. Each piece in the Archetype collection draws its lineage from a specific utilitarian object: the watch chain worn across the waistcoat, the T bar that secured it through a buttonhole, the muff chain that adorned a lady’s wrist.
The Trombone chain pairs elongated links with diminutive circular ones, the rhythm of its construction catching light as it moves. It fastens with a spring clasp positioned to sit at the front of the neck, though this can be swapped for one of Delius’s diamond or gemstone Connectors, transforming the piece entirely. The Twisted Trombone introduces spiral detail; the Show Your Bones plays with negative space. Each necklace retains the architectural vocabulary of its Victorian predecessor whilst existing entirely for aesthetic pleasure.
The Stirrup emerged from a conversation between Delius and a client bonding over their shared passion for vintage jewellery. Drawn to an orb suspended on a muff chain, Delius took that formal silhouette and expanded it, creating an oversized, exaggerated version that commands the décolletage. The Big Stirrup amplifies this gesture further, a study in scale and drama. The name itself evokes the equestrian, that particularly English sensibility for borrowing from field and stable.
Perhaps most intriguing are the Diamond T Bars, those modest fastenings reimagined in natural diamonds and precious gemstones. Originally designed to anchor a watch chain through the buttonhole of a waistcoat, they now stand alone as sculptural pendants. Choose one with or without an Albert Clip, depending on which chain you wish to thread through it.
What Delius has achieved is a kind of historical translation: taking the functional, the overlooked, the purely practical and revealing its inherent grace. These are chains that belonged to no one’s neck before, yet feel as though they were always meant to be worn.
Imagery courtesy of Lucy Delius (@lucydelius).
