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For your consideration is a finely executed late Georgian Scottish armorial seal fob bearing the full heraldic achievement of the Dukes of Gordon and probably commissioned during the tenure of Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon (17431827). Dating to circa 17901827, the seal is mounted in an elaborate openwork frame of gold, gold-cased metal, or gilt copper alloy and set with a substantial golden-yellow quartz or citrine intaglio. Weighing approximately 9.50 grams and measuring 21.1 18.4 mm, with an overall height of 26.2 mm, the piece combines the function of a working correspondence seal with the refinement of Georgian aristocratic jewelry.
The intaglio is deeply engraved in reverse with the complete armorial achievement of the senior House of Gordon. The quartered shield incorporates the traditional Gordon-Huntly arms and is surmounted by the characteristic stags head and neck crest issuing from a coronet. It is flanked by two heraldic wild men, or savages, wreathed and holding clubs, while the lower scroll bears the Gordon motto ANIMO NON ASTUTIA, translated as By courage, not by cunning. The absence of an evident mark of cadency supports association with the titleholder rather than an undifferenced junior member of the family, although the precise original owner cannot be proven without documentary provenance or comparison with a securely dated impression.
The probable production period falls principally within the long tenure of Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon, who held the dukedom from 1752 until his death in 1827 and was among the most prominent Scottish aristocrats of the later Georgian era. A secondary possibility is his son George Gordon, 5th Duke of Gordon, who succeeded in 1827 and held the title until 1836; however, the mounts Rococo-derived scrollwork, chased foliate ornament, textured border, and compact suspension loop appear more consistent with manufacture before or around the time of his succession. The seal may therefore have been made for the 4th Duke and subsequently inherited or used within the immediate ducal household.
The mount displays darkened recesses, localized gray-green exposure, and wear to the raised surfaces, suggesting that it may be gold-cased, gold-filled, or gilt rather than solid gold; definitive identification requires professional metal testing. The stone is best described as citrine-colored quartz, possibly Scottish cairngorm, pending gemological examination. The fob remains in very good condition, with expected age-related wear, minor surface marks, and softened high points, while the armorial engraving retains impressive depth and clarity. Combining an identifiable ducal achievement, sophisticated Georgian craftsmanship, and probable association with Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon, it is an important and highly evocative survival of Scottish aristocratic heraldry and personal adornment.
