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ART DECO & BEYOND: A CELEBRATION OF 20TH CENTURY JEWELLERY
CHRISTMAS 2019 IS MADE OF THESE BLING BELOW!
MAGNIFICENT JEWELS AND NOBLE JEWELS Auction at Sotheby’s Geneva, 13 November 2019
Sotheby’s upcoming auction of precious jewels and gemstones in Geneva will be a celebration of jewellery design, showcasing exceptional Art Deco jewels, complemented by stunning signed jewels from the latter part of the 20th century.
Ahead of the sale on 13 November, the global team of Jewellery specialists has gathered a selection of extraordinary jewels which tell the story of jewellery design through the 20th century.
The autumn selection will showcase emblematic designs from the seminal period of the 1920s and 1930s, as well as more contemporary pieces, bringing jewellery design up to the present day.
Speaking ahead of the sale, David Bennett, Chairman of Sotheby’s International Jewellery Division, said, “This season’s auction will offer a walk through the most important themes of 20th century jewellery. There are exquisite Cartier pieces from the Art Deco era - a period which we have seen time and again holds special appeal for collectors from New York to Paris to Shanghai - including the Burmese cabochon sapphire bracelet, which is a stunning and timeless 1920s design.
"Emblematic pieces from the ensuing decades, created by master jewellers including Harry Winston, Bulgari and JAR, bring to life key moments in modern jewellery design.”
ART DECO TREASURES FROM AN IMPORTANT ASIAN-AMERICAN COLLECTION Of particular note this November, the auction will offer a selection of extraordinary Art Deco pieces emblematic of this highly sought-after era, widely recognised as the ‘Golden Era’ of jewellery creation.
These include jewels from an important Asian-American collector, a prominent female collector who over the course of five decades, acquired important pieces from top jewellery houses, including Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and ‘the King of Diamonds’, Harry Winston.
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The group is led by a breath-taking Art Deco bracelet made by Cartier in 1927, set with a sensational Burmese cabochon sapphire weighing 46.07 carats, flanked by two pear-shaped D Colour diamonds weighing 8.60 and 9.27 carats respectively (est. CHF 2,000,000 – 3,000,000 / $ 2,000,000 – 3,000,000).
From the same collection, an exquisite sapphire and diamond clip brooch by Cartier from 1937 offers a fascinating insight into the jewellery house’s design evolution during this key era: as the house sought out cleaner lines and more architectural shapes suited to the machine age, figurative motifs such as the fan took on an increasingly abstract geometry (Estimate CHF 150,000 – 250,000 / $150,000 – 250,000).
1920s AND 1930s GLAMOUR
Known for emblematic designs, avant-garde materials and glamorous commissions, the 1920s and 1930s continue their prominence in the world of auctions.
Further highlights in the November auction include an elegant diamond tiara made by Cartier in the 1930s, from the Collection of philanthropist and banker Sir John Smith and his wife (Estimate CHF 250,000 – 370,000 / $250,000 – 370,000).
Channelling the spirit of the bold, forward-thinking twenties is a stunning diamond and rock crystal sautoir made by Chaumet in 1929, which was featured in this summer’s “Chaumet in Majesty” exhibition at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco (Estimate CHF 300,000 – 500,000 / $300,000 – 500,000).
This fabulous emerald and diamond pendant/brooch combination, created by Cartier in 1927 uses extraordinary cabochon emeralds from Colombia.
The juxtaposition of organically-shaped precious stones – the top emerald is carved into the shape of a flower - with calibre-cut diamonds in the more geometric setting is a triumph of 1920s design.
The jewel is illustrated as part of a long sautoir in Hans Nadelhoffer’s seminal 1984 book about Cartier (Estimate CHF 150,000 – 250,000 / $150,000 – 250,000).
BOLD IS BEAUTIFUL: THE 1970s
This stunning pair of Colombian emerald and diamond earrings by Harry Winston is very evocative of the bold and beautiful jewels of the 1970s and once formed part of the collection of Her Highness Princess Salimah Aga Khan (Estimate CHF $1,500,000 – 2,500,000 / $1,500,000 – 2,500,000).
The earrings are set with cabochon emeralds weighing 11.33 and 11.94 carats respectively and detachable emerald drops weighing 21.64 and 22.29 carats respectively.
This emerald and diamond necklace by Cartier (Estimate CHF 3,500,000 – 4,500,000 / $3,500,000 – 4,500,000) also formerly belonged to Her Highness Princess Salimah Aga Khan and features exquisite Colombian emeralds, the most sought-after in terms of their geographic origin.
The front is set with three emeralds weighing 14.56, 14.65 and 28.76 carats, and the necklace is further embellished with two sugarloaf emeralds weighing 4.34 and 4.69 carats. The two detachable drop-shaped emeralds weigh 50.65 and 51.32 carats respectively.
The necklace was formerly in the collection of Faith Domergue, the American actress and contemporary of Marilyn Monroe perhaps best known as a “scream queen” for her early appearances in science fiction and horror pictures of the 1950s.
CUTTING EDGE CONTEMPORARY: JEWELS & GEMSTONES
Exceptional contemporary jewels complete the picture, demonstrating the continuing mastery and creativity of modern-day diamond cutters and master jewellers.
Widely recognised as one of the most talented jewellers of his generation, Joel Arthur Rosenthal’s creations – under the name JAR – frequently command strong prices at auction thanks to their unique design and extraordinary workmanship.
This pair of amethyst, Ceylon sapphire and diamond ear clips perfectly illustrate his unique talent (Estimate CHF 200,000 – 300,000 / $ 200,000 – 300,000).
This captivating ring created by Cartier is set with an emerald from Colombia weighing 9.39 carats (Estimate CHF 200,000 – 300,000 / $ 200,000 -300,000).
The selection of rare and top-quality diamonds and precious stones in the November sale includes a stunning Fancy Vivid Blue diamond weighing 3.03 carats(Estimate CHF 3,700,000 – 4,700,000 / $3,700,000 – 4,700,000) and a Fancy Intense Purple-Pink diamond weighing 6.03 carats (Estimate CHF 2,500,000 – 3,500,000 / $ 2,500,000 – 3,500,000).
Also sure to turn heads is a beautiful Fancy Yellow diamond weighing 51.15 carats – it is rare to find yellow diamonds of this size (Estimate CHF 600,000 – 1,000,000 / $ 600,000 – 1,000,000).
EXHIBITIONS: London: 17 - 19 October Hong Kong: 21 - 22 October Taipei: 24 - 25 October Singapore: 27 - 28 October New York: 1 - 2 November Geneva: 8 - 13 November
About Sotheby’s
Sotheby’s has been uniting collectors with world-class works of art since 1744. Sotheby’s became the first international auction house when it expanded from London to New York (1955), the first to conduct sales in Hong Kong (1973), India (1992) and France (2001), and the first international fine art auction house in China (2012).
Today, Sotheby’s has a global network of 80 offices in 40 countries and presents auctions in 10 different salesrooms, including New York, London, Hong Kong and Paris. Sotheby’s offers collectors the resources of Sotheby’s Financial Services, the world’s only full-service art financing company, as well as the collection, artist, estate & foundation advisory services of its subsidiary, Art Agency, Partners.
Sotheby’s also presents private sale opportunities in more than 70 categories, including S|2, the gallery arm of Sotheby's Global Fine Art Division, and three retail businesses: Sotheby’s Wine, Sotheby’s Diamonds, and Sotheby’s Home, the online marketplace for interior design. Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Pinterest | Snapchat | Weibo | WeChat | Youku *Estimates do not include buyer’s premium.
Prices achieved include the hammer price plus buyer’s premium and are net of any fees paid to the purchaser where the purchaser provided an irrevocable bid.
