Friend gave me an old necklace of hers. What does it mean?

So there is this girl I’ve known for a few years now. She lives in Germany while I live in Sweden, and we only get to see each other a few times a year. Last weekend I was visiting her and a few other friends and she gave me a necklace she owns with her name engraved on it. She has had it for a long time and I know how much she valued it. She had been wearing it every time I saw her. As she gave it to me she told me it would act as a reminder of her. We care for each other a lot and wish we could see each other more often, but did the gesture actually mean anything, or was it just a friendly gesture?