Mauboussin - Jewels New York Thursday, June 2, 2022 | Phillips
    • 1950s

    • Old European-cut diamond, 1.25 cts.
      Old European-cut diamond, 1.26 cts.
      Old European-cut, old mine-cut, single-cut, baguette-cut, carré-cut diamonds, total approximately 11.90 cts.
      Signed, French maker's mark and assay marks
      Platinum, length approximately 2 1/4 inches

  • Catalogue Essay

    In 1827, Monsieur Rocher opened a jewellery workshop in Paris, rue Grenata, which was then taken over by Jean-Baptise Noury. In 1878, Noury took part of the Exposition Universelle and got a bronze medal.
    His nephew, Georges Mauboussin, joined the company as an apprentice before taking the direction in 1883. And in 1922, he changed the name to “Mauboussin, successeur de Noury” (Mauboussin, follower of Noury). A year later, Mauboussin moved to rue Choiseul in a building where they could fit all together the workshop, the stone cutters, the designers, as well as the clients’ salons and an exhibition space. Indeed, Georges Mauboussin wanted to organise exhibitions around gemstones. The first one, in 1928, showcased 235 jewellery pieces set with emeralds; the masterpiece was the 24 carat emerald given by Napoleon to Empress Josephine.

    Mauboussin fully embraced the Art Deco movement, and their creations were featured in all fashion magazines alongside famous French designers and couturiers, such as L’Illustration, Vogue, Vanity Fair, and Harper’s Bazaar. The success was crowned by several awards and recognitions: the grand prix at the French Exhibition in New York in 1924, the gold medal at the exposition des Arts décoratifs in Paris in 1925, but also awards from the Exposition Galliera in Paris in 1929, and the Exposition Coloniale in 1931.

    In 1928, Mauboussin opened firms in New York, London and Buenos Aires under the direction of Pierre Mauboussin, son of Georges. But in 1929, following the stock market crash, the American entities closed. Having imported vast quantities of gems and jewels from France in the hope of getting American clientele, by 1935 the sale of the stock was necessary. Mauboussin entered in a collaboration with Trabert & Hoeffer, the New York maison, keeping Mauboussin’s name alive in the United States and giving a French touch and reputation to the American house. The association with Trabert & Hoeffer ended in 1953. Marlene Dietrich, Paulette Godard and Audrey Hepburn were amongst the famous American clients of the maison.

    After World War II, Mauboussin followed the fashion of the time, the use of gold, yellow and rose, the bold design and combination of colourful stones. The scroll motifs were very much en vogue. Jewels à transformations came back and the jewelery maisons were offering double clip brooches, brooches which could be worn as the center piece of a necklace or a bracelet, bold bangles and bracelets that revealed a watch underneath an important motif, earrings with detachable pendants… In 1946, the maison moved to 20 place Vendôme, in the jewelery centre in Paris. The after-war period and the 1950s saw an exuberance in creativity and bold designs. The scroll motifs that appeared in the 1940s are now set with diamonds and gemstones. White designs, white gold and platinum are back in fashion. The 1960s and 1970s are the decades with animal and floral designs, the Arlequin motif, the use of other materials, such as wood, malachite, ivory.

    In the 1980s and 1990s, the maison took a new turn, with simple designs, more affordable jewels and a distance from very high end jewellery pieces.

PROPERTY OF A LADY

145

A Diamond and Platinum Double-Clip Brooch

1950s
Old European-cut diamond, 1.25 cts.
Old European-cut diamond, 1.26 cts.
Old European-cut, old mine-cut, single-cut, baguette-cut, carré-cut diamonds, total approximately 11.90 cts.
Signed, French maker's mark and assay marks
Platinum, length approximately 2 1/4 inches

Estimate
$10,000 - 15,000 

Sold for $17,010

Contact Specialist

Eva Violante

Senior Specialist, Head of Sale,

Jewellery

eviolante@phillips.com

+1 212 940 1316

Jewels

New York Auction 2 June 2022