Multi-Gem and Gold “Serti Couteau” Bangle Bracelet by Suzanne Belperron, Paris, circa 1960
Multi-Gem and Gold “Serti Couteau” Bangle Bracelet by Suzanne Belperron, Paris, circa 1960
A large sculptural bangle centering a dome, set with a selection of gemstones of varying shades of green, including tourmaline, peridot, sapphire, emerald, and beryl, suspended by a polished gold bracelet, edged in a continuous line of gemstones; mounted in 18 karat gold, with French assay marks, in a fitted box
- Maker’s mark for Darde et Fils
- Measurements: 3 × 2½ × 1⅜ inches
Certification
Belperron Certificate of Authenticity No. B60411212019, dated November 21, 2019, stating that the bracelet was manufactured in Paris between 1955 and 1969 by the company Jean Herz– Suzanne Belperron from a design by Suzanne Belperron.
Biography
Along with Chanel and Schiaparelli, Suzanne Belperron was one of the innovators of modern dress and jewelry. Belperron began her career in 1919 designing for René Boivin. Her 1933 partnership with Bernard Herz (and later his son Jean) allowed her to develop her bold, imaginative style mixing hardstones, such as chalcedony and rock crystal, with precious stones, such as diamonds and sapphires. The elegant beauty became a favorite jeweler to the fashionable elite including Diana Vreeland, Colette, Elsa Schiaparelli, and Wallis, Duchess of Windsor. Belperron retired in 1974 and continued consulting on jewelry designs until her death in 1983.
Significance
Suzanne Belperron was a leader in modern design and created some of the most innovative jewelry of the twentieth century. Belperron received her clientele only by appointment in her salon at 59, rue de Châteaudun. The address was privately passed amongst the most fashionable women in Paris, who were drawn to her bold curvaceous designs. Often featured in top fashion magazines such as Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, her modern designs manipulated carved hardstone, metal, and gemstones into fluid sculptural forms that were uniquely Belperron.
Belperron chose colors and textures in the manner of a painter. For this bracelet, she used a palette of greens composed of tourmaline, peridot, fancy sapphires, emeralds, and beryls all set within honeycomb-shapes known as serti couteau or knife edge for the thin and tall shape of the metal. Belperron was inspired throughout her career by motifs of nature and the ancient world. The hexagonal pattern of goldwork employed on this bracelet replicates the structure created by honeybees. An ancient form, the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus wrote in the 1st century B.C. of the mythological Athenian sculptor and inventor Daedalus creating a lost wax casting of a honeycomb in gold so perfect as to be indistinguishable from the real thing. Long known to be an efficient means of engineering and building, the honeycomb also creates a beautiful lattice pattern as seen in the intricate jali (pierced stone screens) of Indian architecture, including the Taj Mahal. This stone setting was invented for Belperron by the workshop Groëné et Darde to enable placing different sized stones together in a visually unified way. She used it often and it became known as the house setting. In a subtle move, Belperron filled the honeycomb in this ring with disparate shades of green that create a rich unified color.
The most important designer of the twentieth-century, Suzanne Belperron created iconic jewels of bold scale and color that were coveted by modern women with an identifiable aesthetic. Just as unusual, beautiful, and wearable as when it was first created, this magnificent bracelet would be a stunning and important addition to any collection.
