Victorian silver scent flask

Victorian silver and enamel ovoid scent bottle with screw cap, front decorated with white & pink roses, hallmarked on reverse Saunders & Shepherd, London, date mark rubbed - couple of dings to cap.

Symbolism

In the Victorian era, roses conveyed complex secret messages through floriography, with colours signifying emotions: red for passionate love, pink for admiration/gratitude, white for purity/innocence, and yellow for friendship or jealousy, all used to communicate feelings too taboo for words in small bouquets (tussie-mussies). The number and even bud-stage of the roses added layers, with a single red rose meaning "I love you," and two roses together symbolising a future engagement.