A superb and very rare example of a Chanel necklace made in France by the renowned House of Gripoix.
Sumptuous, hand-made, faux emeralds, rubies and pearls are set in gold tone metal.
Since 1869 Gripoix has been producing superb "pate de verre" poured glass jewellery. Glass from Producers such as Murano has been hand poured by artisans, known as "petites mains", in the same way ever since.
In the 1920s, Coco Chanel was lured by the impeccably "true'" sheen of Gripoix's faux pearls and thus was established a collaboration that was to last for decades.
Chanel comissioned Gripoix to make costume jewellery to accompany couture outfits. The jewellery was part of the outfit and was unsigned for many many years. It is rare to find any signed Chanel costume jewellery pre 1960.
The Mughal / Moghal style was oft referenced by Chanel; she also loved Byzantine design. Emerald greens and Ruby reds as well as Pearls were typically used in Mughal pieces.
Chanel jewellery made by Gripoix has become so important, in terms of 20th Century design history, that several pieces are now held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York:
Example 1, Example 2, Example 3, Example 4
Our necklace is sold in very good condition but please bear in mind its around 70 years old! Some of the pearls show slight signs of wear – our hi-res photographs have been taken in natural light to give the clearest possible indication of condition.
How do we know it was made by Gripoix for Chanel? We have an email from Gripoix acknowledging that this piece is a very fine example of their work. The red and green glass is the most expensive to work with. Their opinion is that this piece was made for Chanel. In addition, this Mughal style was very often recreated for Chanel pieces.
US buyers, please note there is no sales tax on this item and import tax is only 5.5%.
UK buyers can avoid 22.5% Import Tax on US jewellery items by buying from the UK.
