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GEMSET TIARA
Of an open framework with foliate and scrolling
motifs set with emeralds, red stones and pearls. The
framework rests on a headband. Accompanied by the
original box.
Gross weight: 46.07 grams
$ 4,290 ‒ 7,145
Rs 3,00,000 ‒ 5,00,000
T
he tiara in its present-day form has its roots in the traditions of Greek
antiquity, where the first objects used as jewellery were taken from
nature. “In the ancient world the victorious were crowned with the laurel
wreaths of Apollo and the newly wed with myrtle, sacred to Aphrodite… The
women of the ancient world wore all manner of jewellery… Gold wreaths and
diadems remained an important part of a Greek woman’s parure, but these
were generally reserved for more ambitious and showy occasions, just as
their gem-set descendants are today… By far the most poetic of the ancient
head ornaments, and perhaps the most relevant to the history of the tiara, are
the gold wreaths (
stephanoi
) that took the form of sprays of oak, ivy, laurel,
olive and myrtle.” (Geoffrey C Munn,
Tiaras: A History of Splendour
, London:
Antique Collectors’ Club, 2001, pp. 15-16)
The tiara was particularly relevant in the 17
th
and 18
th
centuries, as a form of
royal adornment denoting the wearer’s high rank, according to tradition. It soon
became a fashionable item to be worn at costume balls and commemorative
occasions. For the Delhi Durbar in 1911, Queen Mary had a tiara made from
Garrard, the first Crown Jeweller of the British Kingdom, who designed it “as
a graduated frieze of lyres and forget-me-not leaves and flowers, emblematic
of harmony and love,” (Munn, p. 128) with the queen’s famous Cambridge
emeralds surmounting the dramatic piece.
Through the ages, the tiara has had several stylistic iterations, particularly at
the hands of modern designers such as Cartier, Fabergé, Boucheron, to name
a few, who transformed it into a work of art. At the turn of the 20
th
century,
the tiara witnessed a return to natural forms, coinciding with the Art Nouveau
movement prevalent at the time, first seen in the works of René Lalique, who
was considered the pioneering jeweller of this movement. With the advent of
Art Deco, the tiara crossed the royal and aristocratic thresholds and became a
popular accessory among flappers. The economic crash that followed saw a
decline in jewellery buying among the masses, except for the privileged few
who could afford it. In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in the
tiara as a fashion or bridal accessory, and it has been the focal point of many
designers’ works, from Versace to Vivienne Westwood.