"I Gave Gold for Iron:" Berlin Cast Iron Jewelry

I gave gold for iron.

What’s not to love about Berlin cast iron jewelry, with a phrase so full of devotion and defiance?

In my research for mourning jewelry, I stumbled upon this beautiful black, intricate jewelry and immediately wanted to know more about it.

Top and bottom images from The Art of Mourning.

These are cast iron pieces dating from the 1800s. The name Berlin Cast Iron Jewelry is what is used to designate this style of jewelry as it originated in Berlin, but the making of this jewelry spread to France and England.

This incredible article gave a thorough description and historical context to the significance of this type of jewelry.

As a way of fighting back against Napoleon, and in lieu of not having enough funds to cover the war, the Prussian royal family pleaded with its citizens to give up their gold and silver jewelry to help sponsor the War of Liberation. In return, the women received these gorgeous cast-iron pieces, inscribed on the reverse, "I gave gold for iron."

They became a symbol of patriotism and honor. The women gave their jewels, the men gave their lives.

They quickly became fashionable across France and England. Napoleon marched on Berlin in 1806, and true to his nature, stole the casting molds and that is how the designs and techniques made it to Paris. England, always looking to Paris as the arbiter of fashion, adopted the trend, merging it with their own taste for black or mourning-style jewelry.

Think of Queen Victoria, forever in black after the loss of her beloved Albert, searching for more somber adornments. It was a perfect match.

The original foundries in Germany were already well equipped, as they specialized in creating ornate metal gates around palaces, mansions and gardens. To create jewelry, artisans crafted wax models or prototype pieces in precious metal, then sand-cast the iron into molds, allowing for multiples to be made.

Designs reflected the styles of the day: Gothic Revival and Neoclassical motifs paired with acanthus scrolls, cameo portraits, and mythological figures.

Production of Berlin cast iron jewelry lasted only about fifty years, from 1804 to roughly the 1850s, but its stylistic and symbolic influence was immense. Jewelers continued to draw on its Gothic and Neoclassical aesthetics, now rendered in precious metals.

More importantly, they carried forward its spirit: jewelry as an object of meaning. From Lover’s Eyes to Victorian hair jewelry to gemstones spelling secret messages, much of the sentimentality that defined 19th-century adornment can be traced back to that simple, patriotic gesture, I gave gold for iron.

Thanks so much for reading.

Take care for now,

Caitlin