What is a shaker locket?

A glazed locket holding loose stones or seed pearls that move behind the glass. Several Edwardian examples appear in the archive. It's a variant of the glazed-front locket rather than a separate category, and dealers name it in the title when a piece has one.

Are most antique lockets Victorian?

Victorian is the single largest period label, on 140 of 342 listings, with Edwardian on 53. Between them they cover the bulk of what turns up. The edges are thinner. Occasional Georgian, William IV, 1940s and 1950s attributions appear, but only as a handful of listings each.

How common are silver lockets?

Silver is named in 72 titles, against gold in 221. So roughly one locket in five on Sellingantiques is a silver piece. The silver runs wider in style than the gold: engraved Victorian fronts, swallow and sunflower motifs, book-chain necklaces, and geometric Art Deco examples.

Why are so many listed as pendants?

Because that's how they're worn. Pendant appears in 154 of the 342 titles, and many of those also mention a chain or necklace. The locket and the pendant aren't different objects here. A hinged compartment on a chain gets called either, depending on the dealer.

Do lockets come as anything other than pendants?

Yes, but rarely. Locket rings, locket-back brooches, bracelet padlocks, watch fobs, tassel earrings and a bangle each surface only once or twice across the whole archive. Brooch is the least uncommon of them, appearing in eighteen titles, usually as a brooch with a hinged compartment behind.

How many mourning lockets are there?

Fewer than the form's reputation suggests. Only ten titles say mourning outright. Related pieces sit alongside them: hair compartments, Mizpah inscriptions and memorial puff hearts all appear in the sampled titles without the mourning label attached.