Henri Dubret Basse-Taille Enamel and Gem-Set Plaque-de-Cou Necklace

An English Antique 15 karat gold necklace with amethyst, diamond and natural pearl. The necklace has an oval cut amethyst approximately 9.50 carats, 30 old mine-cut diamonds with an ...

Composed of old mine and rose-cut diamonds, this rivière necklace is mounted in enameled 18K gold. Each old-mine cut diamond, graduating in size from approximately 0.50 carat to 0.15...

Illustrated in our book: Beatriz Chadour-Sampson & Sonya Newell-Smith, Tadema Gallery London Jewellery from the 1860s to 1960s, Arnoldsche Art Publishers, Stuttgart 2021, cat. no 19 A beautiful gilded silver, Plique-à-jour enamel and pearl plaque de cou attributed to Levinger and Bissinger...

We acquired this dramatic and sexy collar in 2024. It's a custom piece, reportedly made sometime between 1960 and 1980 by a Los Angeles goldsmith, but the piece is not signed. We would find this surprising if not for the fact that our own goldsmith rarely signs anything unless we ask him...repeatedly. So leaving that mystery aside, we are proud to offer such a stunning piece. The front-facing half of the necklace is made from five graduated plaques, each boasting meticulously finished openwork plus diamonds and "Big Three" gemstones. Each plaque is hinged to its neighbor with a sturdy ring. The back of the necklace has a nicely integrated box clasp (with figure 8 safety catch) plus four solid, unembellished bar links, curved and carefully graduated. The plaques graduate from 40mm wide x 25mm tall in the center front to 21mm wide x 7mm tall at the back. All but the back two solid plaque links are trapezoids -- not rectangles -- fashioned to angle perfectly in the three dimensional human space where the necklace will hang. Between the front and back, on each side, are two "transition" links -- a great detail that highlights some real design talent: First is a link that includes three bezel-set gemstones but no openwork, and next is a link that just includes a triangular sliver of open space, thus creating a natural transition to the solid links. Amazing workmanship! The nine diamonds are all brilliant cut rounds pavé-set in little white gold square plates...