N. S. Monserrat Religious pendant/possible relic

When people think of the Virgin of Montserrat, most people think of the "black madonna" in the mountaintop monastery of Montserrat outside Barcelona, perhaps the most famous piece of Catholic iconography in Spain.

It is said that shortly after Saint Ignatius of Loyola was injured in battle and experienced his moment of conversion in 1521, he visited Montserrat and laid down his sword and armor before the black madonna. Ignatius later went on to found the Society of Jesus, whose members are known as Jesuits. The Jesuits were extremely active in the New World, and one of the places they took root was in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Less than 80 years later, the Jesuits founded a monastery and church in Buenos Aires, known as Iglesia de San Ignacio de Loyola. In 1755, a convent was established for nuns in association with the monastery and given the name Nuestra Señora de Monserrat (notice Monserrat, not Montserrat) to honor St Ignatius' holy moment in front of the Virgin of Montserrat in Spain.

Soon a community grew up around N.S. de Monserrat. To this day, the Buenos Aires barrio (neighborhood or district) surrounding both San Ignacio and the convent is known as Monserrat.

It is very difficult to find photos of the inside of the convent and the websites are in Spanish and not particularly helpful but I was able to find one photo of the icon of Nuestra Señora de Monserrat and it looks quite similar to what you have on your charm.

I believe what you have is a charm given or sold to visitors to either San Ignacio or NSM, possibly attached to a rosary or prayer beads. It looks to date possibly as far back as the 1840's, though obviously it is quite difficult to tell. It certainly wouldn't surprise me if the sisters of NSM marked their centennary (1855) with something like that.

I wish I could tell you the value, but with so many unknowns it's difficult to say.  Vintage enamel travel charms regularly sell for under $30, but small Victorian-era enamel charms often go from $50-$100, though may go as high as $500 for particularly fine examples. Considering the quality of the enamel and its narrow appeal, I'd value it around $70, however the right buying would probably be willing to pay much more.

Please let me know if this has been helpful to you, and thank you for sharing such a fun piece.