World War II PT Boat Sweetheart Pin
GUEST:
My dad was a second lieutenant in the Navy, and he was on a PT boat during the war, and my mom had this pin made. Now, where the diamond came from, I have no idea. But my aunt, her sister, who is still alive, said that my mother was famous for taking all the inherited jewelry and making other things out of it. (laughs) And she wore this every day of her life until she died at the age of 49. Aunt Jenny said that she thinks it was made by a man named Willard Davis from Wilmington, Delaware.
APPRAISER:
I did some research, and he was in fact a jeweler in Wilmington, Delaware.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
I see a lot of bugs in jewelry, especially when you go into the Victorian times. I've never seen a mosquito before.
GUEST:
I never have either.
APPRAISER:
Especially on top of what's a torpedo.
GUEST:
(laughs)
APPRAISER:
Now, being he was in the PT boat, "The Mosquito" was their nickname.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And had two of these torpedoes, which I tested. It happens to be a white gold.
GUEST:
Oh.
APPRAISER:
And then we have the mosquito perched on top of it. I mean, he's just so lifelike.
GUEST:
Yeah, isn't he wonderful?
APPRAISER:
And then I think what happened is she decided to do exactly what you said. She wanted to schmaltz it up a little bit.
GUEST:
Yeah.
APPRAISER:
So he accented it with a big diamond. The diamond weighs about a carat and a half, and it's an old mine diamond. This particular type of jewelry had a specific name. Usually it was given from the gent to the lady. And during wartime, we call it sweetheart jewelry.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
I would say, at auction, you're looking at $2,000 to $3,000.
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
Pretty cool.
GUEST:
Yeah, that's great. Security?
APPRAISER:
(laughs)
Appraisal Details
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