TWO ANTIQUE SUFFRAGETTE PINS 1910-1920 Made in Austria

TWO very rare, highly sought after and pretty antique Art Deco Sweetheart brooches. One with a bouquet posy of violets (in Suffragette colours) and a large green lily pad leaf as the background. This type of brooch is also known as a Suffragette Brooch. There are 4 lovely lilac enamel violets/flowers which articulate slightly. The second similar brooch features 4 gold, white & yellow (Suffragette colors) lily flowers. In the early 20th century, suffrage leader Alice Paul understood the importance of creating an iconic visual theme to promote the cause of votes for women. When she formed the National Woman’s Party (NWP), she borrowed the color scheme used by British suffragettes. While the British movement used green, white, and violet (to give women the vote), Paul substituted gold for green to continue the American suffrage tradition. A  1913 article in The Suffragist explained, “Purple is the color of loyalty, constancy to purpose, unswerving steadfastness to a cause. White, the emblem of purity, symbolizes the quality of our purpose; and gold, the color of light and life, is the torch that guides our purpose, pure and unswerving.” The enamel on both is in good condition with some small chipping loss and the gold plating is very good for its age too, however it does have some plating loss on the reverse, that might shine up with a gentle cleaning which is up to the new owner. ONE of these pins has been sold on Etsy for $90 and one on Worthpoint from many years ago!