Van Cleef & Arpels Pièces Exceptionnelles

Van Cleef & Arpels has elevated high jewellery to the status of an art form with the latest offerings in its aptly named Pièces Exceptionnelles collection.

Merveille earrings, Merveille émeraude necklace

There are endless parallels between the worlds of art and sculpture and high jewellery. Both explore the aesthetics of three-dimensional form and, in their tactility, provoke the desire to touch, and in the case of jewellery, to wear.

They also evoke what philosophers and art critics describe as a sense of the sublime – an intense and powerful emotional response felt by the viewer when in the presence of beauty.

Van Cleef & Arpels has brought these two worlds even closer with three new additions to its Pièces Exceptionnelles line: the Merveille d’émeraudes necklace, Rubis en scène bracelet and Tendresse étincelante earrings. A celebration of emeralds, rubies and diamonds respectively, this trio of truly exceptional pieces has been created using rare batches of precious stones to pay homage to iconic pieces that once belonged to some of the maison’s most famous clients: Princess Faiza of Egypt, Marlene Dietrich and Jacqueline Kennedy-Onassis.

Rubis en scène bracelet

Of particular brilliance is the Merveille d’émeraudes necklace – a stunning creation resplendent with five Colombian emeralds weighing a total of 70.40 carats that fall like raindrops from a ribbon of round, baguette-cut and triangle-shaped diamonds. The necklace features customisable details: each emerald is designed to be detachable and either accompanied or replaced by pear-shaped diamonds, which may adorn the clasp. Both the emeralds and the diamonds can also be suspended from a pair of accompanying earrings that completes the Merveille d’émeraudes set.

Merveille d'émeraude earrings with detachable pendants

Like all good art, the necklace comes with a story and history of its own. To further tease out the comparisons to sculpture, much as Michelengelo carved his magnificent David from a piece of marble that had already been worked upon, the Merveille d’émeraudes is a reincarnation of an earlier piece in the house’s heritage. It had first appeared in 1929 as a collaret that, in 1947, was acquired by the Egyptian court representative for Her Royal Highness Princess Faiza of Egypt. Van Cleef & Arpels reacquired the piece in 2014, and if you look closely enough you can still see the tiniest notch on the culet, a hint of its former incarnation.

Tendresse étincelante earrings

Of course, there’s another thing that creations such as the Merveille d’émeraudes share with works of art – attainability. Or, more accurately, exclusivity. The Merveille d’émeraudes and its sister creations, the Rubis en scène bracelet and Tendresse étincelante earrings, are all one-of-a kind pieces that, while definitely for sale, remain priceless. Perhaps a more accurate way to describe it would be items of discretion. The exclusivity of the pieces preclude sordid discussions about coin. But as with works of art, it’s enough to just gaze upon them, right?