This antique jewelry item is an Art Nouveau brooch or pendant with an old mine-cut diamond crafted in 18k matted yellow gold, weighing 29.9g and measuring 5.0cm long, 6.5cm wide and 1.0cm deep. Period designed at the turn of last century and immaculately crafted, this authentic Art Nouveau brooch or pendant depicts a masterfully sculptured griffin, a legendary creature with the body of a lion, the wings of an eagle and a snake-like tail. Clenching a fiery 0.15ct old mine-cut diamond graded J color and SI2 clarity between his jaws, this majestic creature known as the 'King of the Beasts', is shown contemplating his habitat with a triumphant, visual fear-evoking expression. Elaborately rendered in repoussé gold, all features of this creature, including the plumage on the wide-open wings are realistically presented by means of artistic texturing engraving and scalloping of 18k yellow gold, showing the remarkable perspective attained with sculptured gold for which the artists of the Art Nouveau era are well known. This captivating brooch epitomizes the jewelry design of the era in which naturalism, suggestion of form and at times mystical imagery were inherent. The reverse of the pin is rendered in delicately textured gold, outfitted with the original hinged pin and hook closure and two well-constructed and discreet open-ended loops to support chains of various widths, allowing versatility of wear as a pendant.

Deriving its name from the Greek word 'gryphos', the legendary creature called griffin represented a significant figure in the ancient Persian and Greek mythologies. The medieval heraldic traditions attributed wings to female griffins only, believed to build a nest like an eagle and to lay agates instead of eggs. The ancient Persian mythology consecrated griffins to the sun and Persian painters represented the chariot of the Sacred Sun as drawn by griffins. In ancient Egypt, the griffin was depicted with a slender body and the head of falcon, considered a divine figure. In architectural decoration, the griffin is usually represented as a four-footed beast with wings, the head of a lion or a leopard and the beak of an eagle. This can be seen as a symbol in the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where bronze castings are perched on each corner of the museum’s roof to protect its collection. Often seen as a charge in heraldry, heraldic griffins are usually shown standing on one rear leg, a posture described in the Norman-French language of heraldry as ‘sergeant’, a word uniquely applied to griffins and the equivalent of ‘rampant’. A heraldic griffin was included in one of the ten ‘Queen’s Beasts’ sculpted for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 and the City of London adopted griffins as supporters for its coat of arms. The latter, however, show great resemblance to heraldic dragons with scaly bodies and wings, no feathers and no eagle’s beak!

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Suggested Retail Price: $6,000.00 Your Price: $3,900.00 $3,000.00 Wholesale Price: $3,000.00