Chanel Matelasse Diamond & Pearl 18K Wide Bangle Bracelet & Matching Ring C 2009
ON HOLD Chanel Paris Matelasse pearl and pavé diamond bangle bracelet and matching ring, accompanied with the original letter from Chanel to the original client (and valued most recently in 2018 at a bit more than US$300,000).
Even with a recitation of merely the materials involved it is overwhelmingly evident that Chanel intended to create a pair of jewels that could only be described as "Spectacular!"
Specifications:
The Bangle Bracelet:
2 inch wide and 317.15 grams of 18K white gold (the white gold version is rarer than the yellow gold).
105 gem silver white Akoya pearls from 6.5 to 8.45 mm.
757 diamonds equalling exactly 41.97 cts. of D-E color (colorless) and VVS (very very slightly included) or better clarity.
The Ring:
22 grams of 18K white gold
13 gem silver white Akoya pearls from 3.88-7.65 mm.
108 diamonds equalling 1.34 cts. of D-E color and VVS, or better clarity.
Far more than a basket of materials, however, Chanel, to their everlasting credit, have seamlessly achieved nothing less than a tour de force, even by French standards of craftsmanship, that is all but non-existent in 21 Century jewels.
Maison Chanel, during the lifetime (1883-1971) of its founder and namesake earned its clients' respect and devotion in fashion (little black dress) and fragrance (Chanel No. 5) guided only by the inimitable Coco's prior statements which we can paraphrase here as: "Fashion may come and go, but style is forever!"
Equipped with this profound sentiment Maison Chanel also found someone who seemed -if we may say- to be able to channel Chanel. In earlier times, it was the great Verdura but soon thereafter Lorenz Baumer, trained classically as an engineer, but also trained by his sainted mother as a dreamer with no particular historical view of the evolution of jewelry, led Chanel's jewel designs for twenty years before moving on to guide Louis Vuitton's jewelry line and even winning prestigious assignments as from the royal house of Monaco with a diamond tiara which he called "Sea Foam" and the jewelry world called unprecedented and unforgettable, something to which, by then, he was no stranger.
Like our demi-parure of bangle and ring such jewels would be uncomplicated, in the instant example possessing only three materials - diamonds, pearls and white gold. They would also be opulent/oversized to the point that one wrist and one ring finger could carry all or nearly all of a lady's jewelry repertoire for an evening. And they were memorable replete with a remarkable three-dimensional composition of white on white. Finally and above all they would be true Chanel-only Chanel, unfettered by the appendages of prior shapes, formats and design conventions.
These then are the 4 part signposts, the quatrefoil bastions that form the indelible style of Chanel haute couture jewels.
All items sold are accompanied by a detailed appraisal by our gemologist, as well as all original GIA certificates, if specified in listing. As always, we guarantee all of pieces, forever. Each piece of jewelry arrives in a finely gift-wrapped presentation box, in this case the original Chanel box.