I am so happy I was able to see the Cartier exhibit at the Legion of Honor before it was gone, because it was AMAZING! Wow, Cartier’s craftsmanship and design is flawless. I was overwhelmed. Being surrounded by such beautiful, luxurious, and sparkling jewels was quite thrilling. Thank you Auntie J for the free pass!
The most outstanding pieces to me were the necklaces commissioned by Maria Félix, the famous actress of the golden age of Mexican cinema.
Her first necklace was a serpent design, which included a 41.37 carat, D-flawless Ashoka diamond. I had never heard of one of these diamonds. The diamond is named after the Buddhist warrior-emperor Ashoka Maurya. It was mined in the Golconda region of southern India. Due to its unique cut and exceptional beauty, it has attained legendary status! The serpent was made out of platinum and white gold, and encrusted with 178.21 carats of diamonds- 2,473 diamonds total! Cartier’s impeccable craftsmanship allowed for hinge movements throughout the entire necklace. It is said that it has the slithery feel and weight of a real snake of that size. The underside is also enameled to allow comfort for the wearer. Comfort and beauty? What? This guy was incredible.
The other famous design commissioned by Maria Félix was a double crocodile necklace. She brought a baby crocodile in a jar to Cartier, asking to have a necklace made just like the crocodile (actual size too). The resulting design was that of two crocodiles, which could be worn together to create a necklace, or separate to be two bracelets. The bodies of the crocodiles contain 524.9 grams of gold and are set with 1,023 fancy yellow diamonds and 1,060 circular cut emeralds.
These baby crocodiles make me want to watch the movie Romancing the Stone!
