Antique, Three-Row Coral Necklace Made of So-Called Sciacca Coral

This necklace transports us back to a summer about 130 years ago. Over the Bay of Naples, the sun is already low on the horizon. A light breeze blows in from the sea, the lemon trees are in bloom, and in the shade of the outstretched sails, the weary travelers from the north gaze far out across the smooth water. How far away seems their rain-soaked homeland, with its obligations, work, and hardships. How beautiful and carefree life is here! The grand journey south to Italy, with its artistic treasures spanning from antiquity to modern times, was the quintessence of bourgeois and aristocratic education in the 18th and 19th centuries. The Grand Tour took the young gentleman all the way to Naples, after stops in Venice and Rome—and perhaps Florence as well. And, of course, souvenirs from this stay had to be brought home. From Naples, these were primarily coral and cameos carved from mother-of-pearl or hardstone, for the production of which this region has always been famous. The necklace presented here was likely originally acquired on such a journey. The three-row necklace consists of hand-cut Mediterranean coral, which is arranged in a gentle graduated pattern and becomes slightly thicker toward the center. Each of the slightly flattened beads displays a uniform warm salmon hue, typical of so-called Sciacca coral, which was recovered off the southern coast of Sicily beginning in the 1870s. Unlike freshly harvested Mediterranean coral, Sciacca coral does not come from living colonies but from ancient coral reefs that have accumulated on the seabed over many centuries. A characteristic feature is its play of colours, ranging from delicate salmon and peach tones to vibrant orange—a distinction from the deep red of freshly harvested coral. The discovery of these deposits sparked a veritable coral craze in the late 19th century and led to immense production of coral jewellery, particularly in the workshops of the port city of Torre del Greco in the Bay of Naples. By the early 20th century, however, the Sciacca coral deposits had been completely depleted, so that today it can only be found in antique pieces of jewellery. Particularly beautiful is the antique clasp made of 14-karat gold, which securely holds the three strands together—originally likely made for a multi-strand necklace, it features a beautiful round coral cabochon in its center.

Estimate:$1,445.39

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