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Ella Gafter "The Dragon" Objet d'Art Sculpture Cuff Bracelet

Name: Ella Gafter "The Dragon" Objet d'Art Sculpture Cuff Bracelet
Brand: Ella Gafter
Price: 1200000 USD
Availability: InStock

About the Item

“The Dragon” sculpture cuff bracelet is the result of a three-year collaboration between Ella Gafter and gran maestro Pasquale. It was executed in our own workshop in Naples, Italy, the hotbed of Italian high luxury, by jewelry sculptor maestro Pierpaolo. “The Dragon” is as much an objet d’art as it is a jewel to be worn. The vision was to create a mythological creature of an appropriately imposing volume and character while respecting classical rules of proportion, balance and harmony. The dragon's body was sculpted from a single piece of 18 carat gold, resulting in an unbroken, continuous flow from its head to its tail. This extraordinary feat of hand workmanship captures the dragon's essence as an organic, living creature. This body forms the basis for its detailed features: the varied diamond setting patterns representing its scales, expertly hand set by maestro Maurizio, the protruding hand gripping the pearl, and even the exquisite interior of the form, which recalls the segmented underside of a snake. All of these features come together to form an object that exudes both beauty and power, a fitting manifestation of the dragon's ancient symbolism. The cuff is signed EG. About Ella Gafter: In 2001, an extraordinary corsage brooch by Ella Gafter was one of the very few contemporary pieces included in the American Museum of Natural History’s “Pearls” exhibition. It is now prominently and permanently displayed in the new Hall of Gems and Minerals that opened in the spring of 2021. See the brooch in the last image of the carousel. The jewel carries 34.85 carats of top quality round diamonds (F-G/VVS). The untreated South Sea pearl is of the extraordinary size of 19.5mm.

Creator:

Ella Gafter

Metal:

18k Gold,White Gold

Stone:

Diamond,White Diamond,Emerald,Onyx,South Sea Pearl

Stone Cut:

Brilliant Cut

Weight:

220 g

Dimensions:

Height: 2.75 in (69.85 mm)Width: 3 in (76.2 mm)Depth: 4.5 in (114.3 mm)

Style:

Artist

Place of Origin:

Italy

Period:

21st Century

Date of Manufacture:

Unknown

Condition:

Seller Location:

New York, NY

Reference Number:

Seller: 1716Dragon 1stDibs: LU802321803482

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Shop All Ella Gafter

Ella Gafter

Even before Ella Gafter founded her namesake jewelry collection in 1982, she was a formidable presence in the jewelry industry.

As a Rome-based gem dealer, Gafter sold pearls and precious stones to retailers and jewelers but was often dissatisfied with how they made use of the rare materials she worked so hard to source. Instead of grousing, she decided to design jewels that would do them justice, focusing primarily on pearls — akoya, Tahitian and South Sea. She explains her fascination with the lustrous marine treasures simply: “Every woman looks better with pearls than without.”

Her daughter Talila Gafter, then an undergrad at Harvard, was her ally in getting the project off the ground. Together, they made the rounds to stores with Ella’s first efforts. “We had a little pouch with eight pieces and we sold everything,” Talila tells 1stDibs. After graduation, she “was involved one hundred percent” in building the company, whose pieces are handmade by master jewelers in Naples.

The designer insists that her unwavering focus is the source of her success. “There’s no compromising for me,” she says. She’s been known to replace the pearls in a single piece time after time until she’s certain she’s achieved her ideal result. “A pearl you have to respect,” she explains. “You have to put it where it wants to sit.”

Ella describes the collaboration with her daughter as a “partnership,” with each having her own domain. “I’m all fantasy; Talila is the concrete one,” she says. The company is now based in New York City, with Talila as its president while Ella is firmly at the helm of creative decisions. “I’ve never made a design suggestion to Ella,” says Talila. “Nobody does.”

That forbearance has been earned, says Talila. “I admire that Ella doesn’t take no for an answer, her tenacity, her extraordinary ambition. She believes as long as there is life, there is a lot of beauty to create. She’s a force of nature.”

Find Ella Gafter earrings, rings, necklaces and other jewelry on 1stDibs.