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Five-piece parure in original case

third quarter 18th century
Not on view
This matching set of jewelry, or parure, consists of different elements and includes a necklace, a pair of earrings, and two hair ornaments kept in their original case. Set in gold, the pieces are mounted with faceted garnets that have been backed by pink metal foil to enhance their color. Garnets were very fashionable in the eighteenth century and were used to create attractive and affordable jewelry especially for young women. The various detachable parts, such as the festoon and cross-shaped pendant of the necklace, and the lower pendants of the earrings, made the jewelry versatile and suitable to be worn by day or at night. Since the jewelry is not signed, it is not known who made this particular parure. Similarities to designs by Jean Baptiste Piauger published in his Traité des Pierres Précieuses et de la maniere de les employer en Parure of 1762, however, suggest a French origin.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Five-piece parure in original case
  • Date: third quarter 18th century
  • Culture: Possibly French
  • Medium: Gold, garnet; wood, shagreen, silk
  • Dimensions: (confirmed) The necklace: 10 3/4 in. long (with loops); the detachable festoon: 4 ¾ in. long; the cross: 1 ½ in. high; 1 ¼ in. wide; the earrings: 2 in. long; the aigrette: 2 1/2 in. high; the hair ornament: 23 /4 in.x 1 3/8 in.; the case: 11 ½ in. wide; 5 ¾ in. deep
  • Classifications: Metalwork-Gold and Platinum, Jewelry
  • Credit Line: Gift of Evelyn D. Trebilcock, 2021
  • Object Number: 2021.265a–k
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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