Cartier by Cipullo Love Bracelet
About the Item
- Creator:
- Metal:
- Weight:31.1 g
- Dimensions:Height: 0.25 in (6.35 mm)Length: 7 in (177.8 mm)
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Beverly Hills, CA
- Reference Number:
Aldo Cipullo for Cartier
In a jewelry-design career spanning just over two decades, Aldo Cipullo created a portfolio of iconic pieces. And decades after his death, his most famous, the Cartier Love bracelet, remains a best seller.
A life devoted to jewelry seemed preordained for Cipullo, who was born in Naples in 1935 and raised in Rome. His father, Giuseppe, manufactured costume jewelry, and Cipullo, the eldest of five siblings, began selling goods for the family business at age 15.
In 1959, Cipullo left postwar Italy for New York City. He had found the right place at the right time to ply his prodigious talent and navigated between some of the most prestigious jewelers situated on the city’s most glittering thoroughfares, 57th Street and Fifth Avenue. Cipullo’s first stop was the workshop of David Webb, a favorite among the mid-century beau monde. Webb, who was one of America’s most influential and best-loved jewelry designers, became a mentor for the new arrival, advising him to call himself a designer despite his bench jeweler job description.
Tiffany & Co. came next. Cipullo alighted at the design studio in 1964, becoming — along with Sonia Younis, Don Berg and Donald Claflin — part of a youthquake that brought fresh ideas to the stately American brand.
At Tiffany, Cipullo came into his own as a designer with an original point of view, developing a facility across a broad swathe of motifs and inspirations that included lifelike florals, stylized African animals and masks, modern geometries — and hardware, expressed in a series of key-shaped brooches that offer the first glimpse of a theme he would return to later. By the end of the 1960s, he was designing some of Tiffany’s crown jewels, pieces in its Blue Book high-jewelry collection, often using lapis, coral or turquoise. These colorful opaque gems were among the materials that would become hallmarks of his work.
According to the designer’s brother Renato Cipullo — a coauthor with jewelry journalist Vivienne Becker on Cipullo: Making Jewelry Modern (Assouline) — when the term of a two-year contract with Tiffany neared its end in 1969, the brand passed on a gold bracelet design Aldo presented to the house. Though Tiffany wasn’t ready to raise Cipullo’s profile, another suitor would soon pick up the piece and give it, and in turn Cipullo, a major public platform. He struck a deal with Michael Thomas, president of Cartier New York, to carry some of his designs — including the new bracelet — exclusively.
Becker recounts the history of the Cartier Love bracelet in the book: Cipullo frequently said that the Love bracelet was born of a sleepless night contemplating a love affair gone wrong and his realization that “the only remnants he possessed of the romance were memories.” He distilled the urge to keep a loved one close into a slim 18-karat gold bangle. The Love bracelet combined hardware with elements of symbolic Victorian jewelry and the chastity belt, plus the ritual of meaningful adornment.
The bracelet, along with its designer, was just the tonic that Cartier needed at the start of the 1970s, a moment when the venerable brand was seeking an injection of youthful jet-set glamour. Cipullo’s winning streak with the brand continued, even as he designed for his own studio, Aldo Cipullo Ltd., which he established in the early part of the decade.
The Love design — which also yielded a ring and a necklace — was not Cipullo’s sole hardware-inspired jewelry for Cartier; his unisex Juste un Clou (“just a nail”) bracelet takes the form of a curved nail. When he died, at the age of 48, from a double heart attack, Cipullo was only getting started. Nevertheless, he left a profound legacy.
Find vintage Aldo Cipullo Cartier jewelry today on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Beverly Hills, CA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
- 1980s Cartier A. Cipullo Citrine Topaz Diamond Gold Floral Motif BraceletBy Aldo Cipullo for CartierLocated in Beverly Hills, CABeautiful whimsical bracelet created by Aldo Cipullo for Cartier in the 1980s. Inspired by nature's floral motifs, the bracelet is made of 18 karat yellow gold and set with oval cabo...Category
Vintage 1980s American More Bracelets
MaterialsCitrine, Topaz, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Antique French Victorian Bracelet Earrings Brooch 18k Gold by Antoine BarrièreLocated in Beverly Hills, CAAn exquisite Victorian parure comprising of a pair of delicate earrings, dangling brooch, and the bangle bracelet. This French Victorian bracelet earrings pin brooch set was created in the 1900s by Antoine Barrière, 5 place Jean Jaures, in Montpellier, This antique jewelry suit is made of 18k yellow gold, and features cobalt blue enamel, opal and rose cut diamond. The whole antique set is masterfully decorated with a unified looking layout in the center of the piece. The edges are chased with fine leafy design. The earrings are openwork with very airy and feminine feel. Four opals together with the enamel elements create a three-dimensional flower like looking composition. Equipped with the French hook closure. The brooch has a removable part and, being hung upside down, could be worn as a pendant. The bangle bracelet is delicate and very comfortable to wear. Enamel condition is amazingly intact, considering the age of the piece. This fabulous French antique parure...Category
Early 20th Century French Bangles
MaterialsDiamond, Opal, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Adler Tubogas Geneve Gold Tubogas Bracelet GemstonesBy AdlerLocated in Beverly Hills, CAAn 18k gold tubogas bracelet by Adler Geneve, features cabochon sapphires and diamond. The diamonds are brilliant cut, channel set. The ston...Category
Early 2000s Bangles
MaterialsDiamond, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Vintage Diamond Yellow Gold Bangle Bracelet, 1980sLocated in Beverly Hills, CAElegant and wearable bracelet. Made of 18 karat (tested) yellow gold and set with round brilliant cut diamonds (H-I color and VS clarity, total weight is approximately 0.30 carat). ...Category
Vintage 1980s Unknown Bangles
MaterialsWhite Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Vintage 18k Gold Tubogas BraceletLocated in Beverly Hills, CAA great vintage Tubogas bracelet made of 18k gold. The bracelet is elegant and classic. It has rectangular shape with slightly rounded edges. The bracelet’s geometry it perfect; the ...Category
Vintage 1970s Bangles
MaterialsGold, 18k Gold
- 1990s Harry Winston Emerald Diamond Gold Bangle BraceletBy Harry WinstonLocated in Beverly Hills, CAMagnificent bangle bracelet created by Harry Winston in the 1990's. Gorgeous green sparkle of emeralds is emphasized by dazzling brilliance of the diamonds and yellow gold setting cr...Category
1990s American Bangles
MaterialsEmerald, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Aldo Cipullo Cartier Modernist Gold Love Bangle BraceletBy Aldo Cipullo for CartierLocated in Greenwich, CTBe the first. This signed Aldo Cipullo by Cartier 18 karat yellow gold 'LOVE' bangle bracelet was one of the first designed and manufactured in 1969. Sta...Category
Vintage 1960s French Modernist Retro Bracelets
MaterialsGold, 18k Gold
- Cartier Aldo Cipullo 1970s 18 Karat Yellow Gold Love Bangle BraceletBy CartierLocated in Philadelphia, PADesigned as a bangle style bracelet deeply engraved with iconic screw head motif With a high polished finish Opens via two removable screws From the coveted Love collection Numbered ...Category
Vintage 1970s Bangles
MaterialsGold, Yellow Gold
- Incredible Cartier Love Series Bangle BraceletBy CartierLocated in Feasterville, PAAn incredibly rare Cartier Love series yellow gold bangle bracelet featuring hexagon white gold motifs embedded in 18k yellow gold. The bracelet me...Category
Vintage 1960s Bangles
Materials18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
- Cartier Love Pavé Diamond BraceletBy CartierLocated in Oyster Bay, NYBrand : Cartier Description: Cartier Love Pavé diamond Bracelet Metal Type: 750WG/White Gold Weight 50.7g Size: 19 Condition: Preowned; small signs of wearing Box - Included Papers -...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Modern Bangles
- Cartier Love Bracelet Yellow Gold B6067517By CartierLocated in New York, NYOne of fashion’s most recognizable designs, the Cartier Love Bracelet is an iconic piece of the modern jewelry lexicon. Marrying function and aesthetics, the solid 18-karat yellow go...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Bangles
Materials18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Incredible Cartier 1960s Love Series Bangle BraceletBy CartierLocated in Feasterville, PAAn incredibly rare Cartier Love series yellow gold bangle bracelet circa 1960's featuring hexagon white gold motifs embedded in 18k yellow gold. Th...Category
Vintage 1960s Bangles
Materials18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold