Slide # 2
of 18

All the pins shown are marked "sterling"; all but one have the maker's mark and some also show Design Patent number. Yes, at that time the costume jewelry manufacturers were busy obtaining Design Patents for many of their designs. The two largest companies, Coro and Trifari, obtained hundreds, if not thousands, of patents for their designs through the mid-1950's. In 1955 Trifari launched what was a successful lawsuit that upheld the right of costume jewelry designs to be protected under the United States copyright laws. So, after 1955 the industry shifted the focus of their design protection from patents to the easier, faster and less costly copyright system.

All "stones" are glass, with many of them set in open-back settings to allow the light to show through, the same treatment that was used in fine jewelry. The term "gold" refers to the gold-plated sterling - which is called vermeil. All but one of my pins is gold-plated as was the predominant style of the era.

Acknowledgment: Much of the information in this slide-show came from the research of an Italian attorney and his late wife, Roberto and Carla Brunialti, which they shared in 4 amazing books about American costume jewelry produced during what were considered the "Golden Years" of this period, 1935-1950.