Design for a Gold Demi-Parure of Brooch and Earrings with Engraved Scrolls, Gold Granules, Pink Stones and Black Pearls

Drawing with a design for a gold demi-parure of brooch and earrings with pink stones and black pearls that is part of a collection of 85 drawings with figurative designs for earrings, brooches, pendants and other jewels, possibly real-sized, created with graphite and gouache and heightened with gold inside lithograph frames. These designs are all characteristic of the period between 1870 and 1900, when jewelry design saw a great degree of innovation and creativity in both style and technique. Some of the most important innovations that took place at this time included the setting of diamonds without metal on the back to reinforce the refraction of light on the cut surfaces of the stones, and the use of gold granules and cannetille (scrolls of metal strips) in the creation of fine metal surfaces. (Semi-)precious stones continued to be used in jewelry design at this time, especially with the discovery of diamond mines in South Africa, although alternative techniques, many of them inspired on ancient jewelry, were also common: Enamel in its different application techniques (including champlevé, cloisonné, and low-relief) was particularly popular. In addition to enamel, colored glass was used to add touches of color to the metallic structures that formed the base of the jewels. In general, jewelry design during this period became more complex, and the colors in nature were mimicked by the color of gemstones used for jewelry design: the designs were elaborate and relied in the natural beauty of cabochon gems, curving, and figurative designs with symbolic meaning, typical of the Arts and Crafts movement. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, the Art Nouveau movement created sinuous and organic pieces that moved away from conventional stones and put emphasis on the subtle effects of materials such as glass, horn and enamel. The European Middle Ages and the Renaissance, as well as civilizations of the Mediterranean, and even Japan, became important sources of inspiration for jewelry design at this time.

The design for a brooch is made up of a horizontal oval-shaped gold motif decorated with engraved scrolls and gold granules around the frame, with a cut-out lozenge where a round pink stone stands. A rectangular shape is cut out from the bottom half of the oval-shaped motif, and a rectangular gold motif that ends in a trefoil shape hangs from it. A pink stone is placed in the center of the trefoil motif and three teardrop-shaped black pearls hang from each one of the curves of the trefoil motif.

The design for an earring presents a very similar, although inverted shape. The trefoil motif, also decorated with a round pink stone, stands at the top of the design, making up the lobe of the earring. The rectancular shape of this motif is longer, and the oval-shaped motif that holds it is smaller than that in the brooch. It is also decorated with engraved scrolls and gold granules on the outside, and it also contains a cut-out lozenge that holds a round pink stone. Three teardrop-shaped pearls hang from the oval motif, at the bottom of the design.

The pink stones could have been (semi-)precious stones but it is highly possible that they, as well as the black pearls, were replaced by colored glass stones, a technique that was widely in use in jewelry manufacture at the time these drawings were created. The pink stonces could have also been made out of enamel.

The design lies over a black gouache background inside a red ink lithograph frame. A red ink lithograph monogram with the initials "J. B" is placed on the upper right corner of the sheet.