silver locket

A Victorian silver and gold novelty locket with two compartments. A three-dimensional spider and a fly in a web with an oxidized background are set in a raised gold frame with silver balls all around. The upper left corner is folded over like the page of a book and bears the text ‘ye spider and ye flie’. The locket is stamped with an English maker’s mark and an English kite-shaped registration mark, which indicates that the design was registered between 1868 and 1883. The date letter on the right of the kite is no longer legible.

In 1842 Prince Albert gave Queen Victoria a bracelet with a similar design depicting a spider pursuing a fly. It was inspired by the popular poem-nursery rhyme ‘The Spider and the Fly’ written by Mary Howitt in 1828. It is a cautionary tale towards those who use flattery and charm to disguise their true intentions.

“Will you walk into my parlour?” said a spider to a fly;
” ‘Tis the prettiest little parlour that ever you did spy.
The way into my parlour is up a winding stair,
And I have many pretty things to shew when you are there.”
“Oh no, no!” said the little fly, “to ask me is in vain,
For who goes up your winding stair can ne’er come down again.”

weight: 22.78 grams
size: 5.2 x 3.1 cm