Verdura Maltese
20th Century Italian More Earrings
Topaz, Gold, Enamel
Mid-20th Century Italian Bangles
Diamond, Peridot, Blue Topaz, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Enamel
Vintage 1950s American Modernist Brooches
Diamond, Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s American Cuff Bracelets
Citrine, Coral, Pearl, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Artist Brooches
Garnet, Diamond, 18k Gold
1990s American Cuff Bracelets
Amethyst, Citrine, Jade, Pearl, Ruby, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s European Modern Bangles
18k Gold, Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary North American Contemporary Clip-on Earrings
Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Agate, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1970s Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Amethyst, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
1990s Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Agate, Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1970s Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Agate, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold, Gold
1990s Italian Modernist Cocktail Rings
Coral, Turquoise, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Brooches
Late 20th Century Chain Necklaces
18k Gold
Early 2000s American Modernist Brooches
Diamond, Pearl, Quartz, White Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1960s American Modernist Brooches
Chrysophrase, Coral, Malachite, Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Italian Modernist More Jewelry
Diamond, White Diamond, Lapis Lazuli, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1990s French Byzantine Cuff Bracelets
Bronze, Enamel, Gilt Metal
Vintage 1930s French Byzantine Brooches
Amethyst, Pearl, Quartz, Gold, Gilt Metal, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1970s Brooches
Chalcedony, Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
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Vintage 1930s Italian Art Deco Cuff Bracelets
Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary French Contemporary Lever-Back Earrings
Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Drop Necklaces
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s American More Necklaces
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Contemporary Drop Earrings
Aquamarine, Diamond, 18k Gold
1990s French Blazers
21st Century and Contemporary French Link Necklaces
18k Gold
20th Century French Modern Cuff Bracelets
Hematite, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Engagement Rings
Diamond, Platinum
Late 20th Century French Artist Brooches
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century French Modern Modern Bracelets
Diamond, Enamel, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Platinum
2010s American Modern Engagement Rings
Diamond, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Pouches and Wristlets
2010s American Modern Fashion Rings
Diamond, Platinum
2010s Danish More Bracelets
Vermeil, Sterling Silver
2010s Byzantine Pendant Necklaces
Amethyst, Emerald, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow ...
Recent Sales
21st Century and Contemporary European Cuff Bracelets
Amethyst, Diamond, Pearl, Peridot, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s American Contemporary Cuff Bracelets
Amethyst, Citrine, Jade, Pearl, Ruby
21st Century and Contemporary Cuff Bracelets
Late 20th Century Italian Cuff Bracelets
Tourmaline, Cultured Pearl, Diamond, Citrine, 18k Gold
20th Century Italian Cuff Bracelets
Diamond, 18k Gold
Early 2000s Cuff Bracelets
Topaz, Black Jade, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s American Modern Cuff Bracelets
Diamond, Pearl, Turquoise, Gold, 18k Gold
20th Century Cuff Bracelets
Amethyst, Diamond, Pearl, Peridot, Black Jade, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s American Modern Cuff Bracelets
Agate, Citrine, Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Clip-on Earrings
Topaz, 18k Gold
2010s American Contemporary Cuff Bracelets
Diamond, Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Cuff Bracelets
Diamond, Jade, Cultured Pearl, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century American More Necklaces
Amethyst, Aquamarine, 18k Gold
20th Century Link Bracelets
18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Cocktail Rings
Amethyst, Aquamarine, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Brooches
Diamond, White Diamond, Tanzanite, Platinum
20th Century American Modern Cuff Bracelets
Agate, Coral, Pearl, Yellow Gold
Italian Cuff Bracelets
Late 20th Century American Art Deco Cufflinks
18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Carnelian, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Jade, Black Jade, Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Amethyst, Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1990s Italian Modernist Dangle Earrings
Diamond, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Modernist Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Topaz, Blue Topaz, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Modern Cocktail Rings
Aquamarine, Diamond, White Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Modernist Clip-on Earrings
Agate, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1980s French Brooches
Gilt Metal
1990s French Brooches
Base Metal
Vintage 1970s Italian Cocktail Rings
Citrine, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century American Modern Bangles
Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s European Modern Bangles
18k Gold, Enamel
Late 20th Century Italian Modernist Hoop Earrings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Modernist Cuff Bracelets
Aquamarine, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s Italian Modernist Dangle Earrings
Diamond, White Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century American Cuff Bracelets
Jade, Citrine, Ruby, Amethyst, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Charm Bracelets
Amethyst, Citrine, Peridot, Topaz, Tourmaline, 18k Gold
American Bangles
American Cuff Bracelets
21st Century and Contemporary Italian More Bracelets
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Italian Bangles
Amethyst, Diamond, Pearl, Peridot, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary European Cuff Bracelets
Amethyst, Diamond, Pearl, Peridot, Gold, 18k Gold
Italian Cuff Bracelets
Aquamarine, Peridot
American Cuff Bracelets
21st Century and Contemporary American Clip-on Earrings
Tourmaline, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 2000s American Cuff Bracelets
Diamond, Emerald, Cultured Pearl, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Contemporary Clip-on Earrings
Garnet, Tourmaline, Diamond, 18k Gold
Verdura Maltese For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much are Verdura Maltese?
Verdura for sale on 1stDibs
Fulco di Verdura (1898–1978) is not exactly a household name, except for those who know a thing or two about highly original, often eccentric handcrafted jewelry and, even more so, for those fortunate enough to own some. In that exclusive group, Verdura is regarded as the most gifted and coveted designer of his time.
Verdura was born in Sicily in 1898, the scion of a noble family related to the Lampedusas. (His cousin, Giuseppe di Lampedusa, wrote the great Italian saga The Leopard). His life was charmed from birth. Raised in his family’s villa, he grew up during a time when Sicily, and Palermo in particular, were meccas for well-born and highly cultured European travelers.
A bona fide duke with no clear ambitions but creative leanings aplenty (he could draw and paint), the young Verdura was part of the wandering social circuit — the so-called beau monde — that went from capital to capital, resort to resort.
Verdura, though small in stature, had that indefinable quality called charm. As a result, he was the life of every party he attended. When he finally started designing jewelry under Coco Chanel in the late 1920s, many of his friends became his clients (or received the pieces as gifts). Elsa Maxwell took him under her ample wing when she was hired to do public relations for the Lido in Venice and introduced him to the local and visiting cognoscenti. Chanel, whom he met in Venice, hired him to work in the textiles division of her fashion house. But it was his flair for jewelry that soon caught Coco’s eye. Eventually, he rose to become her personal designer of fine jewelry.
In 2002’s Verdura: The Life and Work of a Master Jeweler (Thames & Hudson), Vanity Fair’s Amy Fine Collins describes the sensation of wearing pieces by Verdura, who drew inspiration from nature for his signature gem-studded seashell brooches and honeybee earrings. “They were ingeniously calculated to flatter the wearer,” writes Collins. “Earrings undulated to complement the convolutions of an earlobe, rings seductively followed the phalanges of a finger, and necklaces gracefully traced the anatomy of the throat.”
In 1934, Verdura left Chanel and together with two friends, aspiring actress Princess Natalia Pavlovna Paley and Baron Nicholas de Gunzburg, moved to the U.S. After several stops, he found a job through Diana Vreeland in Hollywood with Paul Flato, then the “jeweler to the stars.” Soon he was signing his work and helping Flato cultivate the crème de la creme of the silver screen — those both on it and behind it.
Verdura left Los Angeles for New York and opened his own salon, first on Fifth Avenue in 1939, just as World War II was beginning in Europe. His backers were Vincent Astor and Cole Porter, for whom he made bejeweled boxes and cigarette cases — gifts from Porter’s wife, Linda — to commemorate the opening nights of several musicals. Verdura began to expand both his repertoire — he became much more daring and flamboyant — and his clientele. The Duchess of Windsor, Daisy Fellowes, Greta Garbo and others routinely gave him commissions. In 1941, Verdura collaborated on a collection of six pieces with Salvador Dalí to accompany a Dalí exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art. Verdura retired in 1972 and left the care of the company to his partner, Joseph Alfano. He later moved to London, where he died in 1978 at the age of 79.
Among the most prized pieces on display in a 2014 Verdura jewelry exhibition in New York were Greta Garbo’s curb-link bracelet watch, which Verdura designed for her in 1939; Coco Chanel’s pair of Maltese Cross cuff bracelets (she wore one on each wrist); and Diana Vreeland’s duo of Byzantine brooches.
Find a range of authentic Verdura jewelry today on 1stDibs.