Pair of cufflinks

Although similar in shape and ornamentation, the brooch and cufflinks are not identical. The brooch has a stylized bamboo gold border, while the cufflinks have a strip of hammered platinum soldered to their lower edges. Each cufflink has soldered to its center a bird perched on what appear to be miniature cattails. The brooch—which is fitted with a hanging loop at its top to allow it to be worn as either a brooch or a pendant—is ornamented with a bird in flight against marsh plants. All of this ornamentation reflects the fascination with Japanese art that captured the attention of European and American designers following the reopening of Japan to trade in 1859. Beginning around 1871, Tiffany & Co. manufactured a wide range of hollowware and flatware, as well as jewelry and accessories, inspired by Japanese art. The motifs are similar to drawings made by Tiffany & Co.’s then chief designer Edward C. Moore (1827–1891) in the 1870s.