Trends

Piece of the Week: Lydia Courteille’s Egyptian Cuffs

TrendsNov 22, 2019

Piece of the Week: Lydia Courteille’s Egyptian Cuffs

They join two historic eras.

20191122_POTW-LydiaCourteille.jpg

As one might imagine from looking at them, there’s an interesting story behind these Lydia Courteille cuffs.

The French high jewelry designer, who began her career as an antique jewelry seller, procured the ancient Egyptian eyes circa 3000 BCE that would have adorned a tomb.

Like many jewelers before her, Courteille decided to incorporate the granite and copper antiques into a new design.

In doing so, however, she looked to another bygone era for inspiration, albeit one far more recent.

She transformed the artifacts into the cuff bracelets pictured, which pay tribute to Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí. In the negative space between the gold and copper eyes, Courteille spelled out in 7.37 carats of white diamonds and 11.5 carats of black diamonds, “Gala Mamuse,” a play on words, meaning either “Gala, my muse” or “Gala amuses me.”

Gala was Dalí ’s wife.

The resulting confluence of eras and influences is uniquely Courteille.

Crafted in 22-karat recycled gold, diamonds and enamel, the cuffs are available through LydiaCourteille.com. Price is available upon request.

Ashley Davisis the senior editor, fashion at National Jeweler, covering all things related to design, style and trends.

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