F ine Jewels presents an array of exceptional pieces from the 19th century to the present, including never seen before jewels from Chopard’s covetable ‘Animal World’ collection and a fabulous pair of earrings from rising star, 28 year old jeweller, Emmanuel Tarpin. Glamourous jewels from the iconic houses of Tiffany & Co., Van Cleef & and Bulgari alongside rare diamonds of different colours are also offered for sale.
10 years ago, Chopard celebrated its 150 year anniversary with 150 unique animal themed pieces. In the last 10 years, the ‘Animal World’ collection has become highly collectable for its creativity and boldness and not least of all is exquisite craftsmanship. Chopard’s Creative Director, Caroline Gruosi-Scheufele, returned to her childhood and re-imagined her favourite things; such as her stuffed toys; this idea grew into a concept that would shape ‘Animal World’ a bestiary of animals from the exotic to the imaginary. For over a year, the Chopard artisans and craftsmen worked endless hours to bring to life the dream world of ‘Animal World’.
"All sorts of precious gemstones were of importance in accomplishing the many shades and colour combinations, trying to achieve the best possible resemblance to the actual living animal"
“With help from the Haute Joaillerie department designers, Caroline Gruosi-Scheufele poured over specialised encyclopaedias and even consulted the Chinese calendar to come up with a collection of animals that is at the same time original, aesthetically pleasing and humorous. Species from every latitude – cats, giraffes, and parrots, for example – are represented in the form of bracelets, necklaces, brooches, earrings and rings.”
There are few fine jewelers more elusive than Joel Arthur Rosenthal, otherwise known by the signature on his creations: JAR. Famous for being inaccessible and entirely mysterious, Rosenthal never advertises his jewels, rarely invites anyone to view them, carefully chooses potential buyers, and reportedly produces just 70 pieces per year from his Switzerland and France-based ateliers. Such secrecy has resulted in a voracious cult following, with collectors taking note when JAR signed pieces are sold at auction. It is for all these reasons that Rosenthal has been referred to as the “Fabergé of our times”.
Today's wristwatches have undergone a lengthy journey since their distant origins in the 16th century. From portable clocks to pocket watches, their evolution into the wrist-worn watches of today has been touched by hundreds of years of world events. Not least among these was the First World War, which, because of the impracticalities of digging through pockets in the trenches, made wrist-worn watches mainstream (soldiers had already been strapping pocket watches to wrists during the Boer war in 1899). It also opened up their use to a male market, as previously these bracelet-style watches had been primarily worn by women. Discover fine examples of these wristwatches below.
Antique jewels paved the way for today’s most celebrated jewellers. Antique jewels can be regarded as treasures of human civilisation. They have survived wars and disasters, they have born witness to the rise and fall of monarchies, governments, economies and populations; they are gifts from the past, waiting to share their tales. The jewels which have survived have captivating stories to tell and have been the inspiration for today’s jewellers who demonstrate the continuing mastery and creativity of modern-day diamond cutters and master jewellers.
"Emmanuel Tarpin is a burgeoning talent with creativity itching for materialization at every juncture in his daily life. He sketches constantly, and hand-paints beautiful beetles, butterflies, corals, and sea life. The inspirational niche between the natural world and the contemporary art world is where his jewellery is comfortably nestled."
