Coram Deo - a beautiful rolled gold buying Victorian mourning brooch set with a hand painted tree miniature

I have set this beautiful pierced Victorian brooch with my hand painted miniature of a branch within which the words ‘Coram Deo' are woven. Coram Deo means ‘in the face of God' and is said to have been used many times by Martin Luther who taught that people should aim to live their whole lives in God's presence.

The painting is held in place on the reverse by a narrow gold ring and I have added a buying piece of perspex to protect it. The piece of glass at the front is original to the brooch and there are some tiny hardly visible nibbles at the edge which are commensurate with age.

This is a truly unique piece with a very special meaning.