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Amethyst jewels for February
Posted by Beth on February 9, 2020, 7:03 pm
I wonder if everyone would like to join in and give their opinion on their favourite amethyst jewel?
It doesn't have to be a "grand" jewel, much less a royal or otherwise well known jewel.
So many of the well known "grand" amethyst jewels are, in my opinion, very ordinary stylistically -- that is they have large stones surrounded by diamonds in a typically classical design.
Of the "grand" jewels which I know of, the Travistock tiara, belonging to the Duke of Bedford, is an exception, and so it is one I find note worthy.
Are amethysts used by modern jewellers? If so, how?
What are noteworthy amethyst jewels -- either modern or old?
Re: Amethyst jewels for February. One which mesmerises me
I love how versatile this jewel is, and am amazed at the size of the tsavorite garnet in the centre.
But above all, I am transfixed by Chan's ability to capture the sense of movement. How does he do it? It is not just metal work! I feel that, somehow, he uses colour with the contours in his metal work to create an amazing sense of movement.
Re: Amethyst jewels for February. One which mesmerises me
I believe the note worthy Amethyst jewel is the one given QA of the UK by the Tsar of Russia and was passed down to her eldest daughter the Princess Royal the Duchess of Fife. I'm not sure where it ended up but it does have a rich provenance. Please see below. But I often wonder if the Kent Amethyst which would be my real choice does not also include a tiara. I've always wondered how is it such a grand necklace with its accompanying earrings and I believe broches did not have a tiara to complete the set.
I wonder if everyone would like to join in and give their opinion on their favourite amethyst jewel?
It doesn't have to be a "grand" jewel, much less a royal or otherwise well known jewel.
So many of the well known "grand" amethyst jewels are, in my opinion, very ordinary stylistically -- that is they have large stones surrounded by diamonds in a typically classical design.
Of the "grand" jewels which I know of, the Travistock tiara, belonging to the Duke of Bedford, is an exception, and so it is one I find note worthy.
Are amethysts used by modern jewellers? If so, how?
What are noteworthy amethyst jewels -- either modern or old?
I don’t think the tiara with the amethysts in the frame is the QA tiara. It looks different to the one of QA wearing it. Also I’m not sure if the picture of QA shows her wearing her amethyst tiara with sapphires or amethysts. In the posted image the frame connect to each other and in the pic of QA there are spacers between each element that rise up.
The first amethyst tiara in the link Dave provided has nothing to do with Queen Alexandra. As far as I know that tiara belonged to an Italian family and is now in a museum (in Florence or Naples??).
All the press reports describing the Queen's clothes and jewels on that day state that her dress was pearl grey and that she wore a sapphire tiara.
There are numerous press reports of Queen Alexandra wearing a sapphire tiara, but this is the only occasion for which we have photos.
Several years ago I argued that the sapphires used in the tiara came from the necklace given to her by her brother-in-law the Czar and her sister, the Empress for Alexandra's silver wedding gift.
The sapphire necklace is the item marked 1 in the sketch below. (It was sold by the estate of the Countess of Southesk after her death)
The tiara was obviously adaptable as the Countess of Southesk wore it with amethysts to the 1937 Coronation, along with Queen Alexandra's amethyst necklace. The amethyst stones are much larger than the sapphires and, from the photos, we can see that the setting of the amethysts is different.
Countess of Southesk at 1937 Coronation
When the jewels were sold after the death of the Countess, they were as an amethyst tiara, an amethyst necklace and a sapphire necklace.
There are numerous reports of Queen Alexandra wearing an amethyst tiara, but these date only from 1904, so it is arguable that the tiara was initially designed for the sapphires.
I'm not particularly fond of amethysts, but a piece I adore – and a perfect match for its strong-willed and charismatic wearer – is the Duchess of Windsor's amethyst and turquoise bib necklace, a special order from Cartier Paris in 1947: one heart-shaped faceted amethyst, twenty-seven emerald-cut amethysts, one oval faceted amethyst, turquoise cabochons, twisted 18 and 20 ct gold, platinum, brilliant- and baguette-cut diamonds.
A brooch by Munich-based jeweller Hemmerle, in several aspects typical for their unusual style: amethysts, sapphires, blackened white gold, wood.
Emperor Nicholas II Amethyst Brooch
Posted by OmerH on February 11, 2020, 3:20 am, in reply to "Hemmerle brooch"
One of my favourites is this amethyst brooch/pendant attributed to Faberge presented to the future Queen Mary in 1909 by the Russian Emperor and Empress during their visit to UK in 1909.
on February 9, 2020, 7:03 pm
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