Precious Vintage Necklace With 20.65 ct Diamonds in Platinum, 1950s

Glowing fruit, fiery leaves, flashing accents of sparkling diamonds and the finest platinum: the necklace here is overwhelming in its abundance, richness and lavish beauty. A hoop of a double row of diamonds gains opulence toward the center. Elegant sweeps, like ribbons blowing in the wind, lay side by side and frame two precious, sculpturally designed fruits. Foliage crowns the climax of the design. Oscillating fringes add further light reflections. The moment we discovered the necklace in the Netherlands, we knew: We must acquire it. Because it is not only precious and beautiful. It is also a quite wonderful example of high quality evening jewellery of the 1950s. In the 1950s, the separation of jewellery for the day and jewellery for the evening, already known in the 19th century, continued to apply, indeed, was sometimes interpreted even more strictly. Only diamonds in white gold or platinum settings were now permitted for balls and receptions, sometimes enriched by individual rubies, sapphires or emeralds. The culmination of this fashion were necklaces all in white - like this piece. What distinguishes these designs from necklaces of later decades is that, in addition to their material luxury, they also display a strong formal language. Here, diamonds are not just strung next to each other, relying on the joy of the eyes at the play of light. Rather, glimpses open up into tropical vegetation, among whose leaves rare animals cavort, or ribbons and lengths of fabric perform a dance full of dynamism. In this delight in plastic design, the jewellery of the 1950s is still completely related to the late Art Deco, the so-called "Retro Style". The necklace presented here is also very close to this style, and we therefore date it to the early 1950s. The necklace comes with an independent appraisal that confirmed the quality of the diamonds. For the history of the necklace in the 1940s and 1950s, see with wonderful examples e.g. David Bennet and Daniela Mascetti: Understanding Jewellery, Woodbridge 2010, pp.372-380.

Estimate:£47,389.69

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