Sotheby’s specialists to publish book “Celebrating Jewellery”
September 20, 2012 – Two of Sotheby’s leading specialists are to publish a book entitled “Celebrating Jewellery” looking at some of the greatest and most iconic pieces from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
The book, by David Bennett and Daniela Mascetti, encompasses jewels that are synonymous with style and luxury, from the formal tiaras, suites and ornaments of the Victorians through to the innovations of Belle Époque and Revivalism, to the geometric and linear designs of the Art Deco movement, and the bold, colourful jewels of the late twentieth century.
Many of the great jewellery designers and manufacturers are represented, including Boivin, Boucheron, Bulgari, Cartier, Castellani, Chaumet, Giuliano, Herz-Belperron, JAR, Lalique, Lemonnier, Schlumberger, Van Cleef & Arpels and Vever. Each jewel is shown in superb detail, with an authoritative and accessible text explaining the history and background to its design.
Some of the jewels are instantly recognisable, such as the Cartier flamingo brooch and the panther bracelet created for the Duchess of Windsor. Others were made to express the power and grandeur of European royalty, or commissioned to adorn aristocratic beauties and great courtesans of the day. While others are simply exceptionally beautiful examples of the jeweller’s art – creations which continue to give immense interest and pleasure to this day.
David Bennett is Chairman of Sotheby’s International Jewellery Division for Europe and the Middle East and has been intimately involved in Sotheby’s most important jewellery collections and sales held during the past 30 years.
These include the 1987 auction of the Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, the world record sale in 2010 of the Graff Pink diamond which fetched CHF 45.4 million ($46.2 million) as well as the sale of jewels of supreme historical importance like the legendary Beau Sancy, one of the most important royal diamonds to ever come to auction, which achieved CHF 9 million ($9,7 million) in May 2012.
Daniela Mascetti joined Sotheby’s in 1980, later opening the firm’s Jewellery department in Milan. Now based in Geneva, she serves as Senior Specialist Worldwide and is one of the field’s most experienced scholars.
Involved with all aspects of jewellery appraisal, Ms Mascetti has been closely involved with a number of exceptional jewellery sales, including the historic sales of such collections as those of the Duchess of Windsor, Thurn und Taxis, Hélène Beaumont and Elton John.
