Antique Amuletic DozenRockCrystals CagedRing MedievalStyle GiltBronze Pendant

In the late 1940s, Trifari's French-born artistic director Alfred Philippe, who had earlier created fine jewelry for Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels, designed this flora-motif crystal...

This early-16th-Century Renaissance period silver-repousse round medallion pendant features a romantic encounter in a rural landscape between a man and smiling woman wearing European-nobility fashion, including a men's feathered hat, tights and sword. A silversmith was commissioned by this unknown man to make the pendant as a hat badge to promote his affectionate nature, which is conveyed by the welcomed gestures between the adult couple, who stand cheek-to-cheek and hand-in-hand. As there is a church in the distant landscape, this may have been his wedding-engagement announcement. It is worth noting that romantic love via marriage was a rarity before the 18th Century. The tragic romantic Italian legend of Romeo and Juliet was first translated into English for publication in 1562--several decades before Shakespeare turned it into a famous play about a deadly consequence of separating lovers. The pendant medallion is framed with a filigree-like inward-curving bezel and a flat metal backplate, while its bail enables it to be pinned as a brooch or strung on a necklace. A perfect engagement or wedding gift for a man or woman who loves antique...

Between the first ad campaign that legendary fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli (1890-1973) commissioned from internationally-admired Paris-based Hungarian-born multimedia artist Marcel Vertes (1895-1961) for her blockbuster perfume "Shocking" in 1937, and in 1940 when they left France after launching her perfume "Sleeping" shortly before the Nazi occupation during WWII, the illustrator-cum-ceramist distinctly handmade in Paris, while traditional materials for couture costume-jewelry were scarce, this whimsical red-glazed ceramic brooch depicting a duck holding a "wet" umbrella dripped with turquoise and a bit of black glaze. Significantly, the brooch-pin trombone clasp, the long-pronged gilt frame, and the text stamped on its back plate "Made In France" match a similarly sized glazed-ceramic brooch of a decoratively-chained bear that was published in the book Bijoux (page 146). The author Deanna Farenti Cera dated that likewise unbranded unsigned brooch to 1938 when it was commissioned for one of Schiaparelli's fashion shows themed "Circus". The invitation to that show, which was illustrated with circus characters and performing animals by Vertes' Parisian peer Christian Berard, included a domestic white duck--notably not holding nor wearing a fashion accessory. Unusually, the fashion designer had commissioned couture umbrellas from other artisans in the 1930s--a couple of which were acquired by TheMet. Another relevant Met acquisition of a Schiaparelli couture...

This rare signed couture set of pave-crystal and gold-plated brooch and earrings from the Art Deco period is marked in the manner of one-off costume jewelry commissioned...

During the ArtDeco period when Gabriel "Coco" Chanel was at her peak as a Parisian couture fashion-designer in the early 1930s, this antique one-of-a-kind handcrafted gem-fringed and gilt-chain medallion brooch with trombone clasp was commissioned to accessorize one of her clothing designs. Marked only "FRANCE" like some early 1930s Chanel couture jewelry (without a brand stamp until the 1950s), its artistic origin is most likely from ornate organic-form sketches by her favorite parurer Fulco di Verdura. The Sicilian duke began creating fabric patterns for Chanel in 1927, which shortly expanded to fine jewelry beginning with custom pieces for herself. These include the iconic Byzantine-influenced gem-adorned cuffs referencing the Maltese military-cross, which the French designer can often be seen wearing in circa-1930s photos. This bright yellow-gold brooch suits goldsmith Verdura's early anti-Art-Deco aesthetic that was considered a radical departure from 1920s silver-tone jewelry, which otherwise featured linear geometric designs or figurative representation. The softly-shaped deconstructed gem-bouquet mixes amethyst and rose-quartz beads with natural Keshi pearls and intricate tiny gilt leaves, which are wired to a Baroque-motif open-work frame that dangles another gem surrounded by a thick gilt-rope halo. Notably, Verdura is credited with re-introducing since Victorian times the rope motif to jewelry. Since 1930, Verdura's unique style was influenced by travels with Chanel to explore Byzantine art, Baroque architecture, and exotic flora-and-fauna among his native Italian aristocratic estate. The legendary fashion-editor Diane Vreeland and American entertainment-stars were among the first Chanel clients to acquire couture real-gem-adorned jewelry made by Verdura, while one of the two brooches treasured by Vreeland was titled "Theodora". See our photo of the Byzantine mosaic of Empress Theodora, whose image wearing many teardrop pearls above her chest and surrounded by a golden halo seems to be the inspiration for this brooch. As one of the most important modern-design collaborations, Chanel's close relationship with Verdura lasted largely-undocumented years in Paris, until he launched his first outside jewelry venture with a Hollywood designer-boutique after emigrating to the United States in 1934. By 1939 as a financially-backed in-demand goldsmith, he founded the namesake jewelry-company Verdura in NYC. After he retired in 1973, the brand continued to operate without him with different owners. Given the duo's designs that played with historic and military references, Chanel's couture commission for this purple medallion may have been sparked in the early 1930s when the internationally-new...

Epitomizing the organic subjects and hand-craftsmanship spanning the Arts-&-Crafts to Art-Nouveau movements that were led in The United States by Louis Comfort Tiffany, this gifted o...

Please check out the HD video! This item can be used as a pendant or a brooch! This is a very well carved natural red coral Koi fish matched with glowing icy apple green jade and diamonds. There are 2 certificates, one for the natural red coral and one for the natural jadeite. The lines and details of this piece are outstanding. This natural jadeite Jade used...

Please check out the HD video! This item can be used as a pendant or a brooch! This is a very well carved natural red coral Koi fish matched with glowing icy apple green jade and diamonds. There are 2 certificates, one for the natural red coral and one for the natural jadeite. The lines and details of this piece are outstanding. This natural jadeite Jade used...

Seductive and enchanting, "Forest Nymph" can be worn as a dazzling pendant or a dramatic brooch. Flowing gold and diamond serpentines clasp a sizeable 47....

Vintage Italian platinum pendant convertible into a millilgrain fretwork brooch, set with 4.5 karats of diamonds / Made in Italy 1930s Length 6.5cm

An exclusive brooch from the famous 'Cosmos' collection, created by Van Cleef & Arpels. Composed of four heart-shaped petals, Cosmos™ is inspired by one of VCA signature flowers and ...

Antique, circa 1880-1910, 18K yellow gold and silver handmade dragonfly brooch/pendant slide with sapphire, opal, ruby and diamond. The plique-a-jour wings are pale blue/green ename...