Victorian Banded Agate in Sterling Brooch

Victorian banded agates came into fashion after the queen visited Scotland, where veins of banded agate had been discovered, and took away with her a wee Scots souvenir of this type of jewelry. Exactly what it was, I could not ferret out, but evidently she wore it in public and soon, banded agates were the bees' (starts with B, stands for British) knees.
Banded agates have not lost their value since; on the contrary, a Scottish agate necklace with banding that is equatorial in most every bead can go for thousands. (Which makes N110 and N081 great bargains. While they aren't the traditional black-and-white that fetch top dollar, they're natural, undyed stones with beautiful—even pictorial—banding, harder and harder to come by.)
This brooch is exceptionally large for its type; most of these were only about an inch wide. Victorian ladies thought small, when it came to jewelry, fearing any display that might be considered immodest, or worse, "vulgar." Others of us have no such fears, vulgarity being the least of our questionable transgressions, such as "immodestly" showing a bit of leg in a side-slit summer dress, or wearing leopard print over the age of fifty. I'll tell you a secret: to celebrate my graduation from rehab, some years ago, I got a tattoo, on my...wait for it...face. Yes! Of La Monroe's famous beauty spot. Never regretted it. So an agate brooch wider than an inch? Pffft. Not the sort of thing that makes this sinner quale with trepidations of judgement. (Judge away, ye critics, and know that the truth doesn't care what anyone thinks. Rumi put it best: "Out beyond ideas of rightdoing and wrongdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there." Please. And feel free to bring your own bottle.)
Measuring close to TWO inches wide at 45.36mm x 13.97mm (1.78” x .55”), this is a nicely visible brooch that will show well on any outfit. Moreover, the agate has exceptional coloring, with some fifteen distinct bands, the palest of whicxh are translucent. I’ve photographed the brooch with light behind it to demo this, but even in my hand, its transparency is evident.
We're lucky: the stone remains in flawless condition, without scratches, chips, or fleabites. Cut in an elongated oval shape, the agate is slightly beveled around its perimeter.
A plain sterling setting holds the stone snugly in place. It looks to have been ever so slightly pinched in on one side, perhaps to secure the gem at some time. This pinch is hardly noticeable unless you’re looking for it; see photo 3.
The stone wafer is 4.23mm (.167”) thick by itself; 4.44mm (.175”) thick including setting.
Seldom have I seen an agate so beautifully rainbowed, antique and still flawless.