M agnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels: Part II will be open for bidding from 29 April–13 May, offering a broad selection of jewelry dating from the 19th century through to the present day and featuring spectacular jewels from the world’s most renowned jewelry houses, such as Cartier, Sterlé, Alexandre Reza, René Boivin and Harry Winston.
From the days of antiquity, royal and noble women have covered themselves with priceless jewels. These jewels embody beauty, glamour, romance and the allure of noble provenance.
The deep fiery red, soft pink, and vibrant orange hues of coral are unmistakable. One of the few organic gemstones, precious coral has been used widely by European ‘haute joaillerie’ houses for over a century. Although matte in its natural state, coral has been polished, engraved, sculpted, rounded, fluted and smoothed. Achingly chic coral can comfortably take the main stage in a piece of fine jewellery or be simply used to introduce colour as an accent or highlight.
Highly prized for its sacred properties for millennia, coral was traded widely between the Mediterranean and India. In ancient Rome children wore necklaces of coral for protection and to ward off evil. In 16th- and 17th-century portraits, young subjects are shown wearing protective coral amulets or holding a branch of coral. The warm seas of the Mediterranean, along the coasts of Italy, Sicily, Morocco, Corsica and Algeria are the birthplace of the most sought-after corals. Rich, opaque, and tactile, the physical attributes of coral mirror the metaphysical; evoking passion, love and prosperity.
For more than 50 years, the House of Graff has represented some of the world’s rarest gemstones. Charismatic and visionary founder Laurence Graff’s extraordinary success rests on his innate understanding of diamonds and his insistence on perfectly proportioned cuts, optimizing the brilliance, color and overall quality of every stone he handles.
