Glamorous Art Deco Bar Brooch With 1.19 ct Diamonds, c. 1930

Amidst the rapidly changing world of the years following the First World War, artists and artisans of the Art Deco movement sought a new design language that would be appropriate for the modern era. They rejected the stylistic elements of Art Nouveau, which they found too delicate and overly romanticised, and instead pursued geometric rigour. Only this, they believed, was suited to the age of automobiles, skyscrapers, and express trains. This aesthetic is also reflected in this bar brooch, whose platinum-plated front is rhythmically structured with diamonds and circles, shadow grooves, and milgrains. At the centre of the design, slightly elevated in their settings, are three diamonds. While the central third-carat diamond is cut in an old style, the two outer quarter-carat diamonds already feature the more modern transitional cut, the forerunner of today’s brilliant cut. Additional diamonds in antique cuts accompany them, sparkling against the white platinum. Bar brooches like this were worn in many different ways: often, unlike in the 1910s, they were placed slightly askew and casually rather than perfectly straight. They were worn at the top button of elegant blouses or men’s-style shirts, or even on a tie—as a deliberate contrast and a symbol of emancipation—something unthinkable just a few years earlier. This well-preserved brooch found its way to us here in Berlin. It was presumably also crafted in Germany. It comes with an independent gemmological appraisal.

Estimate:$6,120.57

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