Gem set and diamond brooch, 'Tutti Frutti', Cartier, 1929

Of garland design, set with carved rubies, emeralds and sapphires, single-cut and baguette diamonds, signed Cartier, numbered. 

Rubies of Burmese origin cannot be imported into the US; this piece may contain a ruby of Burmese origin and therefore may not be able to be imported into the US. Certification of non-Burmese origin is required before the import of rubies into the US. Please see our Important Notices and contact the jewellery department for further information. Signed Cartier, numbered 03087. Coloured stones well matched in colour, with typical inclusions, some surface reaching, some chips, abrasions, scratches and cavities. Diamonds bright and lively. Signs of normal wear to the metal, clasp secure. In very good condition. Gross weight approximately 25 grams.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Please note that colour, clarity and weight of gemstones are statements of opinion only and not statements of fact by Sotheby's. We do not guarantee, and are not responsible for any certificate from a gemological laboratory that may accompany the property. We do not guarantee that watches are in working order. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue, in particular to the Notice regarding the treatment and condition of gemstones and to the Notice regarding import of Burmese jadeite and rubies into the US.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Europe first came into contact with Indian jewellery at the time of the first Great Exhibition in London in 1851. In 1876, Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India, and from 1880 Indian jewellery enjoyed a vogue in both England and France. But it was only in 1900, after the Exposition Universelle in Paris, that Cartier created an ‘Indian’ ring with two cabochon emeralds set in platinum using the standards of French jewellery. Then in the summer of 1901, Pierre Cartier was summoned to Buckingham Palace and was commissioned to create an Indian necklace from various pieces of royal jewellery for the new Queen, Alexandra, to wear with three Indian gowns sent by Mary Curzon, wife of the Viceroy of India. Important contacts with Maharajas were consolidated during the celebrations of George V’s coronation at the Delhi Durbar in 1911, and in the same year Jacques Cartier embarked for his first journey to India. The local Maharajas were instantly fascinated by platinum jewels of Western style and did not hesitate, in the following decades, to hand over their family treasures for reworking into the fashionable European style. The most important of these commissions came from the Maharaja of Patiala in 1925; the redesigning of his collection took three years and the result was a combination of completely modern jewels in Western style and ornaments where the traditional Indian decorative vocabulary had been re-interpreted in a fresh and original way. These jewels combining carved coloured stones, diamonds and platinum mounts with Indian and European influences were called ‘Tutti Frutti’.