Image: Photograph, Garnet & Diamond Necklace, Photographer: Ernesto Moreira, Flickr, CC by 2.0, flickr.com/photos/78147607@N00/4739802024
LABEL
An elaborate, beautiful necklace made with orange gemstones and diamonds from mysterious origins but more recently taken as one of many loot items taken by Bilbo Baggins from the dragon Smaug. It went unnoticed and ignored until the latest owner discovered it among the ruins of her destroyed house after the invasion of The Shire. It then became a prized possession to this owner until her death. If anyone reading this has any knowledge on the possible origins of the necklace, please contact Primrose and Wilimar Fleetfoot.
INFORMATION
Title, name or descriptive phrase
An elaborate necklace with orange gemstones and diamonds.
Author/Inventor/Creator of Object
Unknown creator.
Type of Object
Necklace (image).
Date of manufacture/age of object
Unknown date of manufacture.
Place of manufacture/origin of object
Unknown origin.
Artifact Number
1721
Owner of object
Belongs to the family of Elizabeth Fleetfoot.
Status of object
It is a long-term loan from the family of Elizabeth Fleetfoot.
ESSAY
After discovering the necklace in the ruins of her house, the owner, Elizabeth Fleetfoot, became very fascinated with the origins of it. After the tragedy of the Shire after the War of the Ring, it was one of the few items that survived her home being destroyed. In some ways it brought hope to her during the dark days of her life in the aftermath of the invasion of The Shire. However, the origins of the necklace were unknown to Elizabeth as she had no memory of how and when she obtained it. She would later discover that she received it as a gift but forgot about it somewhere in the back of her home. Her fascination with the origins of the necklace started because the elaborate necklace was unlike anything that Elizabeth had seen before. Eventually, she tracked down the Hobbits who owned it before her to find out that it was brought back with a bunch of other loot by Bilbo Baggins from the dragon Smaug. This was not very useful information for her to find the origins of the necklace as there were many objects taken from the dragon, and those objects were collected by the dragon over a long period of time and from many sources. Due to increasing contact with the rest of the world, Elizabeth could do more research on the origins of the necklace. The owner found inspiration from the mystery of the origin of the necklace to start working at a Mathom, with a particular interest in items with unknown origins, oftentimes comparing the gemstones and craftmanship of the necklace to other objects brought in, particularly other items of jewelry. Unfortunately, she never got any answers about the origin of the necklace before she died, but she did solve the mysteries of the origins of several other objects during her time at the Mathom. The necklace remained in Elizabeth’s possession until she died, after which the remaining family did not know what to do with it. The family did not like the thought of giving away Elizabeth’s prized possession and thought that having the mystery of the origins of the necklace solved would be a good way to honor Elizabeth’s life. Eventually, they came to the decision to loan it out to a museum because it contained some history and sentimental value, and they thought that others would want to see it and not have it locked away. The necklace was loaned out to a Mathom with a note asking for any information about the possible origins of the necklace from both employees and visitors, along with contact information for the family.
This necklace is one of the many foreign objects that found their way to the Shire recently. This object was treated as a beloved possession before the owner, Elizabeth Fleetfoot, died. It came to hold sentimental value for the owner and eventually, the owners’ family. It does not have much use other than to look pretty and in this case, be someone’s prized possession. Before it was brought back, jewelry like this not found in The Shire and the novelty of the necklace and similar objects became a point of fascination for many Hobbits. While it may have been ordinary where it came from, it was new to The Shire. It was one of many symbols of the changes that happened in The Shire after the events of the war of the Ring and the invasion of The Shire. Unlike many other items, it does not have any practical use; it can be worn, or it can be displayed. It is not a weapon, or a practical, everyday item. If one really wants or needs to, it could be destroyed, but that is unlikely to happen anytime soon because no one has any reason to destroy it. It does, however, have decorative and cultural value, especially for the previous owner and her remaining family. While it is not originally from The Shire, it will remain there for the foreseeable future.