Two overlapping Vs, scratched into an English house at the end of the 16th century. A Christian sign, and we describe it as one.
Record, Folk and Modern are kept apart, and each one carries its source. Spotted a better source? Tell us.
English Heritage volunteers mapped marks of two overlapping Vs at Gainsborough Old Hall in Lincolnshire, a house owned by William Hickman from 1596. They were found alongside circles, a pentangle and a “curse” inscription with the owner’s name written upside down.
Some read the double V as a call on the Virgin Mary to keep the house from harm (English Heritage). It is a Christian, Marian sign; we describe it with that respect and do not present it as anything else.
We redraw the mark as it was cut: two Vs, four straight strokes, two points. Every piece carries the whole mark. For two people, a couple pair is offered: two whole pendants whose outer rings clip together.
It opens with the pencil construction, then follows the record, how people used it, and the piece we make today. Every fact in it comes from the sources on this page.
Sterling, gold-plated silver with lab-created stones, and a fully handmade atelier piece. Every tier keeps the symbol whole and true to its source.
925 sterling. A thin outer ring holding two whole Vs, four strokes and two points, in satin openwork.
Gold-plated 925 sterling silver (vermeil). Lab-created white stones where the Vs meet the ring; a lab-created red stone where the inner strokes cross.
Hand-hammered outer ring in gold-plated 925 sterling silver; both Vs pavé-set with lab-created white stones. Made to order.