Necklace

Although his earliest work was as a painter, Louis C. Tiffany is best known as an exceptional designer of decorative arts, from glass and ceramics to metalwork and jewelry. It was not until after the death of his father, Tiffany & Co. founder Charles L. Tiffany, in 1902 that Louis began to design his own jewelry. Among the first pieces of his jewelry to be exhibited were the 27 examples displayed to international acclaim at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis. Here, as in so many of his jewelry designs, he selected gemstones that would diffuse and transform light—as, for instance the large violet sapphire which is the focal point of this necklace. The naturalistic grapevine ornament was one of his favorite motifs. It can be compared to an earlier necklace in the Met’s collection, which features grape clusters and leaves set with tiny black opals and enameled gold (46.168.1).