Cartier's Royal collection for the Biennale des Antiquaires in Paris focusses on exceptional, supersized stones. From the 8.3g historic pearl belonging to Queen Mary of England to the incorporation of huge emeralds, rubies and sapphires, size and transformability are key themes in Cartier's regal high jewellery collection for 2014.
It is one thing to possess a large white diamond, but a perfectly flawless (D IF Internally Flawless Type IIa) wonder weighing over 30 carats is the stuff of dreams. Imagine, then, the sparkle and purity radiating from Cartier's diamond necklace, which is crowned with a brilliant-cut, absolutely pure, pear-shaped white diamond weighing 30.21 carats - it is, quite simply, mesmerising.
Once again, Cartier shows the world that its exceptional eye for spotting seamless beauty is as sharp as ever. The openwork lattice of diamonds on the necklace moves down the neck in a V-shape arrangement to converge in a kite-shaped diamond of 5.12 carats. Beyond the latticework of the main necklace, a triangular diamond, followed by a lustrous white pearl, draw the eye downwards towards the impressive flawless diamond that sits just above the décolleté.
The miracle here is that the flawless diamond seems to float against the wearer's skin, free of all setting. It has taken craftsmen at Cartier over 1,000 hours to make the platinum setting invisible, allowing the stone to shine in all its splendour.
But there is more. The enormous, pure diamond dangling from the necklace can be removed and placed as the centre stone in a platinum diamond-set ring. The main difficulty now is deciding which way to flaunt this flawless wonder.
To read more stories on the Biennale de Paris this September, please click here.
