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Barnebys HQ
Brahegatan 10
BOX 5038
114 37 Stockholm
All auctions / Jewelry & Gems / Elegant Clip Brooch with Glass-Cameos & 1.70 ct Diamonds, c. 1985
It is difficult to understand 1980s jewellery without its cultural context. It was a time of economic dynamism, rapid media growth, and deliberately staged glamour. Fashion became bolder, more extroverted, and increasingly served as a means of self-assured self-expression—a trend that was also clearly reflected in jewellery. Eye-catching design became the guiding principle: pieces grew larger, more prominent, and more opulent in their use of materials. Yellow gold, warm and luminous, dominated the design, often combined with polished surfaces, clean geometries, and sculptural forms. “Less is more,” Ludwig Mies van der Rohe had formulated as the guiding principle of Modernism. A good sixty years later, architect Robert Venturi countered this ideal with the motto of postmodernism: “Less is a bore”—“Less is boring.” Hardly any other slogan sums up the design ethos of the 1980s more aptly. This extraordinary clip brooch seems to come straight from that world. At its center are two orange-brown glass cameos featuring mythological scenes. They depict the winged Cupid firing an arrow and the dancing muse Terpsichore holding a lyre. However, the ancient motifs are not presented in a historicizing manner. Instead, they are integrated into a striking frame that is entirely in keeping with the 1980s. Staggered, sharply contoured gold forms surround the glass castings of ancient models, lending the design an almost futuristic effect. Numerous brilliant-cut diamonds and four baguette-cut diamonds add sparkling accents among the geometric elements, enlivening the bold design like tiny flashes of light. The solidly crafted gold underscores the luxurious character of the piece of jewellery. It is precisely this surprising approach to historical models that gives the brooch its special appeal. Antiquity is not copied here, but reinterpreted. Postmodern designers freely drew upon the forms of past eras, combined them with contemporary design ideas, and created something entirely original. History was not reverently preserved, but creatively reinterpreted. Thus, this brooch unites the past and the present, mythology and modern design language, classical imagery and the self-assured glamour of its time. Futuristic geometry meets ancient figures; precious diamonds meet luminous glass. The contrasts are not resolved but deliberately staged—making the piece of jewellery an exemplary testament to the postmodern spirit of the 1980s.
Estimate:$4,881.04
To the auctionView all items fromHofer AntikschmuckorJewelry & Gems
Estimate:
$4,881.04
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COLLECTION OF EGYPTIAN STEATITE SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD SCARABS
02/01/2026
$601.46
Est: $162.6
