CHRISTIE'S BIJOUX FRANCAIS

CHRISTIE'S BIJOUX FRANCAIS JUNE 18TH 1997 THIS CATALOG CONTAINS 142 PAGES AND 141 LOTS  WITH :

LA VIE PARISIENNE : Paris in the 19th Century, a gaslit world of romantic crinolines by Worth, and jewellery of a glittering magnificence and proportion to set off the tightly corseted waist, the deep cleavage and the billowing festooned skirts of the time. Diamond necklaces in festoons, fringes and swags spread over powdered bosoms, elaborately wrought brooches of diamonds and pearls were pinned two and three at a time on lace corsages, to create the fashionably opulent look which whirled and waltzed around the ballrooms of the Second and Third Empires. LA BELLE EPOQUE:  As the 19th Century drew to a close, the silhouette of fashion changed, becoming curved and hourglass in shape. Lace, organza and pale chiffons replaced cut velvets, satins and brocades. Jewellery changed too; elaborate silver and gold settings gave way to finely milled platinum, now beginning to be seen by the light of electricity, a sparkling white glitter. Finer and finer were the settings used by the major French jewellers of the time, imparting a delicacy and refinement to jewels which has never been bettered. LE CHIC DU COCKTAIL By the end of the thirties fashion was preparing for war with aggressive, militaristic silhouettes and details, wide shoulders and short skirts. Martinis and White Ladies were the favoured cocktails in the blackout, and heavy gold brooches and double clips, often with a hint of machine aesthetic were set with bands and strips of coloured stones. The cocktail cuff in plain gold, often with a buckle detail, became the most fashionable accessory - the perfect foil to the plain black wool crepe cocktail dress. LE TEMPS MODERNE After a brief flirtation with 18th Century revivalist bouquets and baskets of flowers in the fifties', jewellery became very adventurous in the sixties, taking the Space Age as its inspiration, as did the fashions of the time. Whiter-than-white diamonds were set in stalactite formations, big coloured stones were surrounded by galaxies of pear-shaped and marquise diamonds. Crystal and onyx became transparently fashionable when combined with the white of the diamond or the deep blue, green or red of precious stones. SALE 5808