Sotheby’s is pleased to present 42 beautiful jewels from the late 18th century to the modern day times, with each jewel telling a story from the era it was created. We often believe that if jewels could talk, they would have such interesting stories to tell! This was precisely what we had in mind when we curated for Sui Generis: Bejewelled Treasures of Time. Some of the highlights include three 19th century jewels with royal monograms. One worn by the children of King William IV, a 11.88 carat Fancy Light Brown-Pink Diamond from Harry Winston, and an American Deco bracelet from Marcus & Co. Join us on a bejewelled journey through time and space in the language of colours, textures, symbols and motifs.
蘇富比榮幸呈獻42件自18世紀末至今的璀璨珠寶，每一件年代珍品，都訴說著一段傳奇。這也正是我們征集並這一專題拍賣的初衷：Sui Generis孤芳不自賞，穿越時空的珠寶。本次上拍的精品包括三件極有可能為19世紀威廉四世國王後人所有並佩戴過的皇室珍品；來自海瑞溫斯頓品牌打造的一枚重達11.88克拉淡彩棕粉紅色鑽石配鑽石戒指，一條精彩的美國著名品牌Marcus&Co. 裝飾藝術時期的手鏈。我們誠摯邀約，與您一同開啟穿越時空的珠寶收藏之旅，在色彩，質感，符號，紋飾中體驗年代珠寶的非凡魅力！
Winston once said, “Jewels are more than my love and my life, they are an insatiable obsession.” Throughout the 20th century, the name Harry Winston became synonymous with the rarest gems of superb quality. This Fancy Light Brown-Pink diamond weighing 11.88 carats reflects his vision for unique gems and reveals its beauty to the world.
In the 1953 movie, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Marilyn Monroe famously sang the line “Talk to me Harry Winston! Tell me all about it,” whilst performing the song Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend, which summed up the jubilant attitude towards diamond’s most famous namesake. Harry Winston’s innovative design philosophy, where individual gemstones, rather than metal settings, would dictate the design – helped to revolutionize fine jewellery designs, and continues to remain the cornerstone Harry Winston’s timeless aesthetic.
溫斯頓曾言：「珠寶不僅是我的畢生摯愛，更是一種永不滿足的渴求」。在二十世紀，海瑞・溫斯頓這個名字已成為質量超卓、舉世罕有的寶石的代名詞。這枚11.88卡拉淡彩棕粉紅色鑽石反映了溫斯頓對稀世珍寶的獨到理解，展現他將鑽石的內在美感完全綻放、與世人同享的非凡才華。
在1953年的電影《紳士愛美人》中，瑪莉蓮・夢露表演《鑽石是女孩最好的朋友》一曲時，唱出經典歌詞「Talk to me Harry Winston! Tell me all about it…」，滿懷喜悅地點名歌詠這個世界上最有名的鑽石品牌。海瑞溫斯頓認為寶石比金屬底座更能主導首飾外形，這個創意非凡的設計哲學革新了高級珠寶的工藝意念，成為延續品牌雋永美學的磐石，以及啓發後來設計的靈感泉源。
The journey of Marcus & Co. started with Herman Marcus, who led the firm with his sons at the turn of the century. Born in Germany, Herman Marcus trained in Dresden before moving to New York in the 1950s. He was savvy with European trends and known for his connoisseurship. He worked with Charles Tiffany before joining Marcus & Co., established by his son William Marcus. His love for classic literature, paintings, and engraved gems were often inspirations for his jewellery designs and the firm soon became one of the most important producers of fine Art Nouveau jewellery in America.
During the Art Deco era, jewels were lavish and the American market welcomed colours in the form of sapphires, rubies and emeralds. Marcus & Co. also branched out to London, Paris and Palm Beach to take advantage of new international movements in the 1920s. Exotic motifs from French jewels became a key source of inspiration as jewellery designs continued to broaden their themes to sculpture, architecture, textiles, and more. Oriental influences, including Chinese, Indian, Persian and Japanese art, were very popular in this era as could be seen in this example. Jewels by Marcus & Co. were acquired by museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Victoria & Albert Museum.
赫爾曼・馬庫斯（Herman Marcus）於世紀之交創立珠寶品牌Marcus & Co.，與兒子一同經營家業。赫爾曼・馬庫斯生於德國，曾於德雷斯頓習學，1950年代遷往紐約。他對歐洲的流行風尚了解獨到，並以超卓的鑑賞眼光為人所熟知。他曾為查爾斯・蒂芙尼工作，後來，品牌的業務拓展交由兒子威廉・馬庫斯（William Marcus）掌舵。赫爾曼對古典文學、畫作及刻面寶石情有獨鍾，常常從中汲取設計靈感。不久以後，Marcus & Co. 便躍身為美國新藝術風格首飾的重要珠寶商之一。
在裝飾藝術運動年間，寶石乃十分奢侈的材料，美國珠寶市場則主要偏好藍寶石、紅寶石及祖母綠等鮮豔寶石。承接1920年代多場嶄新國際運動的盛勢，Marcus & Co. 分別進駐倫敦、巴黎及棕櫚灘。隨著珠寶的設計主題日益擴展，涵蓋雕塑、建築、紡織等多個範疇，法國珠寶那些充滿異國情調的圖案成為重要的靈感泉源。從本品可見，中國、印度、波斯和日本等東方藝術亦是當時珠寶設計的靈感來源。Marcus & Co. 的作品現已獲大都會藝術博物館及維多利亞與艾爾伯特博物館收藏。
The brooch on the very left bears the crowned cipher of William IV, the initials “WR” representing William Rex. It is formed as a Tudor Rose, which is a traditional English heraldic emblem. In the 19th century, the Tudor Rose was used as symbols of mementos for British royals. The jewel would have been worn by the children of William IV. Similar examples are listed in the book Ancestral Jewels by Diana Scarisbrick (p. 80), Brilliant Europe: Jewels From the European Courts by Diana Scarisbrick et al. (p. 234), and Jewellery from Renaissance to Art Déco 1540-1940 by Diana Scarisbrick and Norio Ohashi (p. 138).
圖中最左邊的胸針飾英王威廉四世的皇冠徽章，呈都鐸玫瑰形，上方的字母「WR」為「威廉王（William Rex）」的縮寫。威廉四世的後裔曾佩戴過此別針。都鐸玫瑰為英國的傳統紋章標誌，十九世紀時，它被用作英國皇室紀念物的專用圖案。類例著錄於戴安娜・斯卡瑞斯布里克所撰的《祖傳珠寶》（頁80），《輝煌的歐洲：歐洲宮廷珠寶》及 Diana Scarisbrick 及 Norio Ohashi 合撰的《從文藝復興到裝飾藝術時期的珠寶，1540-1940年》（頁138）。
Germano Alfonsi (1926-2006) was a goldsmith and sculptor based in Rome, using the wax technique to create figural gold jewels and objects. He often paid homage to renaissance paintings and sculptures in his work, such as this example depicting the painting by Rapahel, The Marriage of the Virgin (1504). A similar example is listed in the artist's archives.
Germano Alfonsi (1926-2006) 是一位常駐意大利羅馬，以失蠟法創作人物及動物造型的金飾及作品的金匠及雕塑家。他對文藝復興時期的繪畫及雕塑情有獨鐘，如這件作品中即為部分再現拉斐爾1504年繪製的《聖女的婚禮》。
Tullio Gramantieri wrote for the magazine Vita Artistica in 1926, stating “This superiority of Buccellati, stemming from having brought goldsmithery into the field of art, was immediately sensed by the crowd that collected his pieces with ever growing enthusiasm, and by a vast host of jewelers who, still seek to emulate him, however without succeeding in producing anything but banal and incorrect imitations – moreover rather easily recognizable.” Mario Buccellati was inspired by Burano lace and created intricate gold jewels akin to lacework in linen, tulle or silk. This example in lot 9039 shows an engraving technique called rigato which requires moving the burin in the same direction to achieve a finishing texture that looks like silk (the signature look of Buccellati).
Tullio Gramantieri曾在1926年為《 Vita Artistica》雜誌撰文說：“ Buccellati的這種優越性源於將製金工藝帶入藝術領域，立即引起了人們的關注，他們以越來越高的熱情收集他的作品，並受到了廣泛的歡迎。 很多珠寶商，仍然試圖效仿他，但是除了平庸和並不準確的模仿之外，沒有成功地創作，而且相當容易辨認。 Mario Buccellati的靈感來自Burano花邊，並創造了類似於亞麻，薄紗或絲綢花邊的複雜金飾。這件手鐲完美詮釋了一種特殊的雕刻工藝，稱為rigato，其方法是沿相同方向移動刻刀，以獲得如絲綢般的紋理：Buccellati的經典之象！
Kingfisher feathers were sought after for their vivid colour during the 19th century, notably by the Qing dynasty. Various forms of adornments, especially hair decorations, were made during the Daoguan reign (1821-1850). Gems such as spinels, sapphires, corals, pearls and turquoise would be used together to highlight the jewel, often in naturalistic forms symbolizing auspiciousness. This contemporary example, designed as a chrysanthemum, symbolizes longevity in Chinese culture. It is believed to be able to extend one's life and during the Han Dynasty people would drink chrysanthemum wine on the ninth day of the ninth month of the lunar year for its health-giving properties.
點翠因其艷麗的色彩，在19世紀的清代受到極力的推崇。不同造型的頭飾在道光年間（公元1821-1850年）陸續被創作問世，風靡一時。如尖晶石，各色剛玉（藍寶石），珊瑚，珍珠以及綠松石經常被用作吉祥紋飾的一部分點綴其上。這件點翠精品以盛開的菊花為造型，象征著福壽延年，自唐代起便已經廣受人們喜愛。甚至於更早的漢代起，人們就已經以菊花入酒，在農曆九月初九重陽節小酌，寄寓延年益壽。
On one occasion he took up the study of jewels, and appeared at a costume ball as Anne de Joyeuse, Admiral of France, in a dress covered with five hundred and sixty pearls. He would often spend a whole day settling and resettling in their cases the various stones that he had collected, such as the olive-green chrysoberyl that turns red by lamplight, the cymophane with its wire-like line of silver, the pistachio-coloured peridot, rose-pink and wine-yellow topazes, carbuncles of fiery scarlet with tremulous four-rayed stars, flame-red cinnamon-stones, orange and violet spinels, and amethysts with their alternate layers of ruby and sapphire. He loved the red gold of the sunstone, and the moonstone’s pearly whiteness, and the broken rainbow of the milky opal. He procured from Amsterdam three emeralds of extraordinary size and richness of colour, and had a turquoise de la vieille roche that was the envy of all the connoisseurs…
「有段時間，他醉心鑽研珠寶。有一次，他模仿法國海軍上將安・德・茹瓦約斯，披上綴有五百六十顆珍珠的華服現身化裝舞會。他經常花上一整天的時間，反覆擺弄珠寶盒裏的寶石，例如在燈光下會變紅色的橄欖綠色金綠寶石、銀光閃爍的貓眼石、淡黃綠色橄欖石、玫瑰粉紅色和酒黃色托帕石、灼灼如星光四射的紅玉、石榴石、橙色和紫色尖晶石、寶石紅與寶石藍色層層交疊的紫水晶等。道林喜歡太陽石的金色紅光、月亮石的潔白珠光，以及乳白色蛋白石的斑駁虹彩。他在阿姆斯特丹買了三枚尺寸碩然、色澤濃艷的祖母綠，並擁有一顆令所有鑑藏家艷羨不已的古董綠松石……」
In the early 20th century, smoking was all the rage in Europe and North America for both men and women. The coming few decades saw a rise in demand for luxury in smoking, so Cartier created elegant tobacco accoutrements during this time including cigar cutters, cigarette cases and cigarette holders such as this example. In the book, Cartier in the 20th Century by Margaret Young-Sánchez et al., there is a similar example of the cigarette holder made in 1912 and sold to Jacques Cartier (p. 132).
二十世紀初，煙草文化席捲歐洲及北美洲大陸，不論男女均流行吸煙。此後數十年，市場對吸煙和煙草相關的奢侈品需求日益增長。卡地亞在這段時期創作了不少高貴典雅的煙草配件，包括雪茄剪和煙盒，而本作就是一例。Margaret Young-Sánche 撰寫的《二十世紀卡地亞》載錄一件類例，該煙盒製於1912年，售予雅克・卡地亞（頁132）。
