David Webb | 18 Karat Gold and Diamond 'Nail' Ring

David Webb

18 Karat Gold and Diamond 'Nail' Ring

Designed as a coiled nail, the terminals signed with round diamonds, mounted in 18 karat gold and platinum.

Can something as common and unremarkable as a household nail become a creative canvas for unique and remarkable design? In the hands of David Webb, yes.

Prongs, nails, and screws usually serve as the invisible backbone of David Webb pieces, supporting and holding together glittering gemstones and gold on pieces that are anything but understated. But with the Nail Ring — and the entire Nail collection of rings, bracelets, cufflinks, earrings, and neck collars, hammered, polished, and set with diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and turquoise — it's the functional and basic that becomes powerful and beautiful.

It's no surprise the Nail Ring came to be in 1971. Its creation followed the social revolutions of the 1960s and was an answer to the brewing desire for self-expression and a new, uncluttered lifestyle. Geometry and simplicity replaced ornamentation and ostentation, and the Nail Collection — with its "non-jewelry" look, unisex designs, and wear-with-anything simplicity — represented quality and equality for all.