Van Cleef & Arpels "Magic" Alhambra Mother of Pearl
View Similar Items
Van Cleef & Arpels "Magic" Alhambra Mother of Pearl
About the Item
- Creator:
- Design:
- Metal:
- Stone:
- Dimensions:Length: 48 in (1,219.2 mm)
- Style:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:2015
- Condition:
- Seller Location:North Hollywood, CA
- Reference Number:Seller: #869701stDibs: LU92218694882
Magic Alhambra Necklace
“To be lucky,” the French jeweler Jacques Arpels (1914–2008) once said, “you must believe in luck.” Arpels, nephew of Van Cleef & Arpels cofounder Estelle Arpels, certainly did — and nowhere is this more evident than in the Magic Alhambra necklaces, as well as in the rest of the jewelry house’s Alhambra collection, the design of which references a certain lucky charm.
A young Jacques was reportedly fascinated with searching for four-leaf clovers — a plant synonymous with good fortune — in the yard of his childhood home. His affinity for four-leaf clovers informed some of his most celebrated work at the jewelry house, which he joined in 1932. By the 1950s, Van Cleef & Arpels sought to create more everyday jewelry. Enter Jacques’s simple quatrefoil design, inspired in part by his childhood expeditions as well as the keyhole arches common in the Moorish architecture of Spain and Northern Africa. The Alhambra motif, first launched as a long necklace in 1968, is said to be named for the Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain, where these archways abound. A Magic Alhambra necklace that debuted in 2006 featured six motifs of different sizes. The piece, which joined some dozens of necklaces created for the series over the years, is an artful take on Van Cleef’s most recognizable design, and its asymmetrical pattern gives the impression of the quatrefoils dancing across its wearer’s décolletage.
Early Alhambra pieces caught the attention of celebrities like Grace Kelly, and its popularity endures today, with Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, wearing earrings and a necklace from the collection to 2020’s BAFTA awards ceremony. As a result of ever-broadening enthusiasm for the line, Van Cleef & Arpels devised new riffs on the quatrefoil design in the decades since its launch.
Like many pieces created by the artisans at Van Cleef & Arpels (after all, this is the jewelry house that invented the painstaking mystery setting), the Alhambra collection owes to a mix of artistry and stunning precision. Each quatrefoil is carefully shaped and hand-set with a stone and then attached to a chain. Certain Alhambra styles — such as lapis lazuli or mother-of-pearl — require the jeweler to cut quatrefoil pieces to fit exactly into their frames, which are then secured with barely visible prongs. The result is, well, magic.
Van Cleef & Arpels
One of the world’s foremost jewelry houses, Van Cleef & Arpels is particularly noted for a focus on technical virtuosity, craftsmanship and artistry, evident since its beginning. Rather than create earrings, bracelets, necklaces and other adornments primarily for the aim of displaying of wealth and opulence, Van Cleef & Arpels sought to produce jewelry that projected the wearer’s taste and style.
The company was formed a year after the 1895 marriage of Alfred Van Cleef, the son of a gem cutter, to Estelle Arpels, daughter of precious-stones dealer Salomon Arpel. Ten years later, Van Cleef & Arpels opened its first boutique on the Place Vendôme in Paris, setting the march on a square now crowded with dealers in bijouterie. (The company still occupies the New York flagship store opened in 1939 at Fifth Avenue and 57th Street.)
Born from a union of expertise in both jewelry making and gem selection, Van Cleef & Arpels distinguished itself with both the consistency of the color and clarity of its stones and the creativity of its designs. In doing so, the house would win a roster of dedicated, fashion-conscious clients that included the Duchess of Windsor, Marlene Dietrich, Barbara Hutton, Jacqueline Onassis and Elizabeth Taylor. In 1933, Van Cleef & Arpels patented its trademark Mystery Setting — a technique by which gems are fitted into an intricate matrix of slots and “drawers” that keep the setting hidden. Another signal innovation was the Zip necklace, introduced in 1951, which can be worn either around the neck or, with the zipper closed, as a bracelet.
But as much as to the firm’s craftsmanship, clients have been drawn by the insouciance and playfulness of Van Cleef & Arpels designers, as well as their attunement to the cultural climate. After the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922, the company produced several lavish pieces featuring hieroglyphics and other Egyptian motifs to go along with the geometric Art Deco jewelry of that decade and the next. Following World War II, as symbols of freedom and rebirth, the firm focused on naturalistic forms such as birds, flowers, fruit and flying insects. High society’s 1960s fascination with the Near East and India prompted such pieces as the best-selling Alhambra necklace, popularized by Princess Grace.
Lately, attention among collectors and connoisseurs has centered on Van Cleef & Arpels’s quality of workmanship as much as its glamour. The firm was the subject of a 2012 show at the Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, as well as exhibitions at the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, California, in 2013 and at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris in 2014.
Find an exquisite collection of Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry on 1stDibs.
- Antique Diamond Crescent Enamel Snake with Pearl on Diamond ChainLocated in North Hollywood, CADiamond Crescent Necklace with Snake holding a pearl on a diamond studded chain. There is slight loss to the green enamel but it does not distract from the beauty of this piece. Th...Category
Vintage 1910s Unknown Art Nouveau Link Necklaces
MaterialsWhite Diamond, Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, Enamel
$3,040 Sale Price20% OffFree Shipping - Antique Diamond Crescent Enamel Snake with Pearl on Diamond ChainLocated in North Hollywood, CAThis Antique Diamond Crescent Necklace with Snake holding a pearl is on a diamond studded chain. This snake started his life as a pin/brooch but I turned it into a necklace. There i...Category
Vintage 1910s Unknown Art Nouveau Link Necklaces
MaterialsWhite Diamond, 18k Gold
$3,040 Sale Price20% Off - Art Deco Lorgnette with ChainLocated in North Hollywood, CAArt Deco Lorgnette With 26" Chain. These lorgnette glasses are incised with scrolls and such along the entire body inside and out. Stamped 14K, they...Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Link Necklaces
Materials14k Gold, 18k Gold
$1,400 Sale Price20% Off - Masriera Pique a Jour Long Chain 18kBy MasrieraLocated in North Hollywood, CAThis Masriera Plique a Jour necklace is amazing. Seldom do you find these necklaces as most Masriera pieces are Plique a Jour women pendants. P...Category
Vintage 1980s Spanish Artisan Link Necklaces
Materials18k Gold
- 14K Enamel Baton Chain circa 1910Located in North Hollywood, CAThis lovely baton Chain is perfect to display a special piece on the end link. This necklace is 14K Yellow Gold with enamel in a beautiful blue with a white stripe on the edges. Th...Category
Vintage 1910s English Art Deco Link Necklaces
Materials14k Gold, Enamel
- Diamond Station Necklace 14K WGLocated in North Hollywood, CAThis Diamond Station Necklace is made from an old watch chain just look at the details on the links. They are engraved and it gives more dimension to th...Category
Early 2000s American Art Deco Link Necklaces
MaterialsDiamond, 14k Gold
- Van Cleef & Arpels Mother-of-Pearl Magic Alhambra Long NecklaceBy Van Cleef & ArpelsLocated in Palm Beach, FLVan Cleef & Arpels "Magic Alhambra" long necklace, featuring eleven various-sized mother-of-pearl clover-shaped motifs in 18k yellow gold beaded frames, the stations on an 18k yellow...Category
2010s French Link Necklaces
Materials18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Van Cleef & Arpels Yellow Gold Mother of Pearl Pure Alhambra Pendant NecklaceBy Van Cleef & ArpelsLocated in Banbury, GBSKU CT-2413 Comes With Full Set (Box + Card) Date 2020 RRP £ 3400 Inc taxes / $ 3,600 Excl taxes /3900 € Inc taxes Model VCARA39700 Serial Number JB****** Metal 18k Yellow Gold Stone...Category
2010s French Chain Necklaces
Materials18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Sold$3,817Free Shipping - Van Cleef & Arpels White Gold Mother of Pearl Vintage Alhambra 20 Motif NecklaceBy Van Cleef & ArpelsLocated in London, GBA beautiful 18k white gold mother of pearl necklace from the Vintage Alhambra (VCARF48800) collection by Van Cleef & Arpels. Featuring 20 iconic clover motifs, each motif is set with...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Link Necklaces
Materials18k Gold, White Gold
- Van Cleef & Arpels White Gold Magic Alhambra 6 Motif Chalcedony NecklaceBy Van Cleef & ArpelsLocated in London, GBA luxurious 18k white gold necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels from the Magic Alhambra collection VCARN18900. The necklace features 6 four leaf clover motifs alternating in size, set with...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Link Necklaces
Materials18k Gold, White Gold
- Van Cleef & Arpels White Gold Mother of Pearl Magic Alhambra Necklace VCARN32200By Van Cleef & ArpelsLocated in London, GBA gorgeous 18k white gold mother of pearl necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels from the Magic Alhambra collection. The necklace comprises of the iconic 4-leaf clover motif pendant set with...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Pendant Necklaces
Materials18k Gold, White Gold
On Hold$6,341Free Shipping - Van Cleef & Arpels Yellow Gold Mother of Pearl Magic Alhambra Necklace VCARD7930By Van Cleef & ArpelsLocated in London, GBA gorgeous 18k yellow gold Van Cleef & Arpels necklace from the Magic Alhambra collection. The necklace comprises of 16 iconic 4 leaf clover motifs alternating in size, set with moth...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Chain Necklaces
Materials18k Gold, Yellow Gold
$27,991Free Shipping
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Gems by David Webb, Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels Anchor The Back Vault’s Treasure Trove
Boasting one of the largest collections of David Webb in the world, the firm offers exceptional jewels — always in demand yet never in short supply.
This Turquoise Van Cleef & Arpels Alhambra Necklace Is a Rare and Alluring Find
You know the French maison’s famous motif well. But why is this particular piece so in demand?