Luxurious Vintage Earrings with South Sea Pearls & Tanzanites, c. 1985

Fit for a Queen

Luxurious Vintage Earrings with South Sea Pearls & Tanzanites, c. 1985

€ 8,980.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

Incl. VAT, Shipping

Description

This description was automatically translated from German. If you have any questions about this piece of jewellery, we will be happy to help!

The ancient author Pliny considered pearls to be the most precious good of all. In his *i**Naturalis Historia*, he recounts a wager between Cleopatra and Mark Antony: she claimed she could consume the equivalent of ten million sesterces in a single lavish banquet. To this end, she had a cup of vinegar brought to her at the appointed time. Before the eyes of the emperor, who was already certain of victory, she then removed one of her pearl earrings—and drank the liquid. The act was so shocking to those present that the referee, Lucius Plancus, hastened to declare her the winner of the bet—lest she sacrifice the second pearl as well. We have the Japanese entrepreneur Mikimoto to thank for the fact that large, round pearls like those set here were no longer reserved exclusively for queens in the 20th century; he invented modern pearl farming. For a long time, only Akoya pearls cultivated in Japan were available in a quality that could rival that of natural pearls. It wasn’t until the late 1970s that pearls from various countries south of Japan were added to the market. Japanese experts had successfully applied their knowledge of domestic pearl cultivation to the “Pinctada maxima” oyster—a species previously unused in Japan—which is capable of producing particularly large pearls: the “South Sea pearl” was born. These earrings date from the early days of South Sea pearl cultivation, when large pearl necklaces and earrings represented the pinnacle of luxury. Each earring features a particularly large, round South Sea pearl measuring more than 1.7 cm in diameter. Suspended from each of these precious treasures of the sea is a movable drop of tanzanite. The pearls’ meltingly silky luster perfectly complements the gemstone’s intense brilliance. Dating from the 1980s, these earrings are very good in condition and came to us from a prominent Stuttgart collection. To this day, they beautifully capture the opulent elegance of that decade.

Learn more

Pliny describes Cleopatra's wager in Book IX, Chapter 58. The scene was depicted in a painting by Tiepolo, among others; a beautiful copy of his work can be found in Dessau, in the Gothic House.

Learn more

Size & Details

Fit for a Queen

€ 8,980.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

Incl. VAT, Shipping

Our Promise

We want you to be 100% satisfied! For that reason, we examine, describe and photograph all of our jewellery with the utmost care.

You can rely on our years of experience in the trade and our expertise as a professional art historians for reviews of the antique jewellery. As a member of various trade organisations and the British Society of Jewellery Historians, we remain committed to the highest possible degree of accuracy. In our descriptions, we always also indicate any signs of age and defects and never hide them in our photos – this saves you from any unpleasant surprises when your package arrives.

Should you for some reason not be satisfied, please don’t hesitate to contact us so that we can find a solution together. In any case, you can return any article within one month and we will refund the full purchase price.

Learn more

Fit for a Queen

Earrings

Privacy settings