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Last summer my little brother dug up this piece of jewelry with his metal detector in France (near Vichy). It's roughly 5 cm from top to bottom. It has no hallmarks.
From what time period could this piece date? It is made from pure silver, and was buried about 20 cm deep in the ground in the middle of a piece of forest. As far as I could find, it looks like a (Victorian?) pocket watch fob from the early twentieth century. Is it possible that this is indeed that old?
I think you are probably correct with your assessment of the purpose and age of the item. It does appear to be a Victorian era watch fob, worn on a chain to aid in retrieving the pocket watch.
A similar item in Etsy shows the similarity in overall design and especially the tassel style.
where the item is described as
Large Victorian Silver Enamel Tassel Fob Pendant
Searching those keywords on google images will bring up other similar items on places like eBay and Pinterest, most mentioning Victorian as age (some saying style,however)but I have not seen anything identical. You may be able to find more info either from a book on jewelry, a local jeweler, or look for watch collectors who may have more specific info.
