Some sting, buzz or whistle in your ears while others make you shudder... got it?
For Halloween, Galerie Pénélope invites you to (re)discover its unique, precious and ethical entomological selection, in which autumn's "relous" guests adorn the most ravishing pieces of jewelry. Our mission? To make insects as irresistible as precious stones precious stones !
From the 19th century, when they were larger than life and mounted in a trembleuse style (i.e., on a spring-loaded mount so as to twitch at the slightest movement), to the Art Nouveau period when dragonflies and other anthropomorphic creatures came to life in their hands, insects were among jewellers' favourite subjects.
Did you know? The same idea can be found in the history of painting, with the " Musca depicta" or painted fly. In his Lives of the Best Painters, Sculptors and Architects, Vasari recounts that Giotto, then an apprentice in the studio of the artist Cimabue, once painted a fly so lifelike that the master tried to chase it out of the picture. From then on, the insect became the symbol of painting's ability to imitate reality to the point of deceiving the senses.
A personification of the temptation of sin, the fly can also illustrate the ephemeral nature of life. In the 17th century, these themes were repeated in Vanités, a category of moralistic still lifes. Our article Black is black will immerse you in their "Souviens-toi l'Eté dernier que tu vas mourir" atmosphere. It'll give you plenty of anecdotes to tell at your fancy dress party, and don't worry, there's plenty of talk about princes and jewelry !
Frans van der Mijn, A Lady in a Landscape with a Fly on Her Shoulder: an Allegory of Touch, 1742, Private collection.
The fly still plays the trompe-l'œil role in the painting above, but this time with the delightful naughtiness of rococo painting. We leave it to your imagination what the painter wants to touch. Spoiler alert: not the fly. But after all, it's also the month of October! pink.
For the more playful among you, a " musca depicta " (painted fly) hides in a painting reproduced in one of our articles on color. Blue, yellow, orange, green, red, violet, pink, black, white... Can you find it?
As for the journey towards entomological jewelry, it begins as early as the Merovingian era (5th century AD). But as fascinating as the history of jewelry is, each has his or her own preferred era, and Galerie Pénélope is well aware of this, the 19th is our playground. Welcome, then, to our cabinet of curiosities!
The 19th century: a buzzing century
Antique tiger eye bee and diamonds brooch
Decorating imperial residences, embroidered in gold on the coronation mantle or adorning the flag of Elba, the bee is inseparable from Napoleon I. But why did the emperor, whose megalomania is no secret, choose the insect rather than an imposing animal? But why did the emperor, whose megalomania is no secret, choose the insect over an imposing animal? Well, it's true that he also had an eagle for an emblem: that's where you come in, "Boney".
Jacques-Louis David, The Coronation of Emperor Napoleon I and the Coronation of Empress Josephine in Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris, December 2, 1804 [Detail], 1805-1807, Paris, Musée du Louvre.
In 1804, the proclamation of the Empire ushered in a return to sumptuous court life. Napoleon had to display his splendor by choosing symbols that distinguished him from the Bourbon Monarchy, in order to do the same thing, but differently. And our bee, therefore, creates a symbolic link with a much older royalty: that of the Merovingians. Surprise! (No.) It seems that the Franks were buried with their jewels. As a result, no fewer than 300 gold and garnet garnet were discovered in 1653 in the tomb of Childéric (Clovis' father), who died in 481 - we refer you to your secondary school lessons. It is assumed that they were sewn into his clothes. Scattered throughout the 17th century, around thirty were offered to Louis XIV, most of them stolen from the Cabinet des Médailles in 1831. Two have survived, including the one below.
Did you know? Just like the pearl of the young girl in Vermeer's painting, some historians question whether it was a bee, preferring instead a cicada. Cicadas in the Tuileries Palace... and why not?
" Bee ", gold head and thorax, garnet-encrusted wings, grenetis decoration on the edge of the abdomen, Avant 482, Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France.
In addition to bees, flies, spiders, butterflies, beetles, grasshoppers and dragonflies were also adorned with multicolored stones in the 19th century. This trend reached its peak in the 1860s and lasted until the early early 20th century.
Our precious insects (and spiders, for the purists) can be found on brooches worn randomly on bodices, sleeves, shoulders and in hair, on lace veils or charlottes. A fashion that seems to have come from England: in our article " Jewelry and sport "(part 1), we tell you more about the "Novelties", the brooches and pins that marked the taste of a new era for more naïve and frivolous motifs inspired by everyday life.
That said, Victorian prudery (in which emotions and personality are suggested rather than expressed) is not far off! Does your heart skip a beat? Give a sentimental jewel to your loved one. Have you lost a loved one? Express your grief with a mourning jewelry. If your mind were in the wrong place, you'd swear it was Marketing avant la lettre. But isn't it? Victoria ?
Like the language of flowers, insects in the 19th century had a hidden symbolism. While the bee represents work, order and fidelity, the butterfly inconstancy, the beetle mystery and exoticism, the fly betrays coquetry.
At the same time, 19th-century Western society was undergoing profound transformations, notably through advances in the natural sciences and the development of travel. The expansion of the Colonies also gave Westerners the power to import insects, each more unusual and fascinating than the last.
Sargent's painting below is a good illustration of the period's infatuation with the exotic: the dress of the actress portraying Lady Macbeth is entirely embroidered with elytra, iridescent pieces of carapace protecting the wings of sternocera (a family of beetles). At Galerie Pénélope, we can't imagine a better Halloween costume! And for the crown, we've got just what you need: our head jewelry.
John Singer Sargent, Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth, 1889, London, Tate Britain.
Coralmother-of-pearl, tortoiseshell, teeth... nor can jewelry be said to be lacking in the use of organic materials. organic materials. If you're interested in the subject, we've devoted an article to it in our journal.
But if there's one civilization that undoubtedly fascinates, and which is a leitmotif in the jewelry history of the 19th and 20th centuries, it's the Egypt of the pharaohs.
Egyptomania, from Napoleon to Elizabeth Taylor
Some ancient Egyptian motifs, beyond their decorative character, also had protective virtues: while the snake and scorpion were reputed to ward off evil spirits, the falcon preserved from adversity and the scarab protected for eternity. The latter was the most common amulet in Pharaonic times.
We take this opportunity to (re)share with you this incredible head jewel adorned with five genuine scarabs, the symbol ofEgyptomania of the 19th century. Egypto...kézako?
Ancient scarab comb, Egyptomania tiara
Numerous events linked to ancient Egypt marked the 19th and 20th centuries, starting with Napoleon's campaign (1789-1801) and Dominique Vivant Denon's Voyage dans la Basse et la Haute Égypte (1802). From then on, Egypt became a source of inspiration and fantasy for Western Europe.
Bonaparte himself succumbed to this trend, giving Marie Walewska, one of his mistresses, a ring in the shape of a scarab made from a fragment of the cannonball that killed her horse at the Battle of Dresden in 1813. A jewel that echoes our rare sentimental pendant from the First World War, with a firearm projectile at its center.
Pendant Great War yellow gold and case
Western Europe's passion for Egypt was further strengthened in the 1820s with Champollion's deciphering of hieroglyphics, followed by the erection of the Obelisk de la Concorde in Paris in 1836. Also in the 19th century, the publication of Auguste Mariette's work on his discoveries in the Nile Valley and the inauguration of the Suez Canal in 1869 revived the Egyptian craze.
The same was true in the 20th century, with the discovery of Tutankhamen's tomb in 1922, at the height of the Art Deco period. Art Decoperiod, and the release of the Hollywood film Cleopatra in 1963, starring Elizabeth Taylor as the Queen of Egypt.
So many reasons to use beetles in jewelry. In turquoiseenamel or lapis lazuli, keep your eyes peeled for the many beetles hidden among our antique jewelry. Unlike mummiesEgyptomania, hasn't aged a day!
Antique medallion Scarab Lapis-lazuli Diamonds and Pearls
Art Nouveau: jewelry that gives you wings
After our " Novelties" brooches of the 1860s, insects remained in the spotlight, particularly under the Second Empire. At the time, jewelers gave pride of place to diamonds set in tremolo, reinforcing the realism of the naturalistic motifs. They were also used in the girly Belle Époque during which ribbons, floral motifs, fruit and insects joyfully mingled. Bees gathering flowers and butterflies, for example, were very popular.
Butterfly necklace Art Nouveau
But we couldn't end this article without mentioning Art Nouveau, a theme that recurs relatively often in our magazine. newspaper. For the historical context, please consult l'Histoire du Bijou - Le XXe siècle (part 1) and also in opal and topaz.
Reacting to industrialization and aspiring to shake up codes (out with historicism and the hegemony of the diamonds), Art Nouveau jewelers asserted that the value of a piece of jewelry lay in its design, not in the materials used to make it. René Lalique, one of the movement's most renowned jewelers, blithely mixed gold, horn and glass, opal or enamel in the service of his ideas. Whether crafted with an entomologist's eye for detail, or stylized according to the creator's whim, Art Nouveau jewelry is a return to the art of craftsmanship.
Arnould Art Nouveau bracelet in yellow gold
Nature remains the primary source of inspiration, but it is now fantasized and stylized: we are no longer content to simply represent it.
Under the influence of the Japanese prints that were being discovered at the time, attempts were made to capture the grace of the living world through curved lines. Insects, butterflies, wasps and dragonflies, with their diversity and intrinsic qualities, were the motifs of choice for jewellers of the time. For example, the wings of dragonflies and butterflies lend themselves perfectly to plique-à-jour enameling, which allows the creation of transparent flat areas of color.
Sometimes, too, anthropomorphic creatures emerge from the jeweler's imagination: flower-women, dragonflies; "graceful creatures swimming or soaring in a light swirl of sinuous lines". (Lanllier Jean & Pini Marie-Anne, Cinq siècles de joaillerie en Occident).
Art Nouveau style opal enamel Dragonfly ring
After all, entomological jewelry doesn't scare you, does it?
We don't know if after reading this you'll want to cover your hair and neck with our precious insects, but we'll have fulfilled our mission if we've been able to pass on a little of our passion for antique jewelryunique and ethical jewelry.