HIGH JEWELRY SIGNATURE COLLECTION

HIGH JEWELRY SIGNATURE COLLECTION Lion

Gabrielle Chanel was born under the sign of Leo, her birthdate August 19, 1883. Like the lion, Mademoiselle was majestic, instinctive, radiant, powerful and fiercely protective of the things that were hers.

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A profusion of white diamonds creates a handsome frontal lion, while carefully calculated volumes ensure the most flattering portrait. Handcrafted in 18K white gold*, this High Jewelry brooch represents Leo, Mademoiselle’s zodiac sign.
*White gold plated with thin layer of Rhodium for color.

In 1919, Gabrielle Chanel fled Paris to Venice, the city of the lion, devastated by the loss of her great love, Boy Capel. While there, under the watchful eye of the Lion of Venice, Coco found new inspiration and the courage to go on.

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The ring's majestic pavé-diamond lion, handcrafted in 18K white gold*, stands boldly upon the summit of an internally flawless, custom 5.28-carat Marquise-cut diamond of radiant and staggering beauty.
*White gold plated with thin layer of Rhodium for color.

Throughout her life, Gabrielle Chanel kept figures of lions, the emblem that would be engraved upon the buttons of her tweed suits. Forever protecting Coco Chanel, the lion is the spirit of CHANEL High Jewelry.

“I’M A LEO AND LIKE HIM, I SHOW MY CLAWS TO PROTECT MYSELF, BUT, BELIEVE ME, I SUFFER MORE BY CLAWING THAN BEING CLAWED.”

— Gabrielle Chanel, Pierre Galante, Les Années Chanel, Ed. Mercure de France - 1972, p. 322

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A transformable lion necklace begins with a river of diamonds encircling the neck, creating a classic style when worn on its own. The detachable lion is added for a longer, bolder necklace, the Leo sign emblazoned with diamonds, amidst a constellation of pear­cut, oval­cut and cushion­cut diamonds and handcrafted in 18K white gold*.
*White gold plated with thin layer of Rhodium for color.

Working from an original design by the High Jewelry creative studio, a sculptor crafts the lion from clay, creating a majestic creature in motion, which is then cast in 18K yellow gold. The lion stands on a base of quartz crystal and white diamonds, materials beloved by Mademoiselle, while the paw of the lion protects a clock, enclosed in a clear crystal globe, with a dial paved in diamonds.

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This lion table clock is an exceptional example of the savoir­faire process embraced by the High Jewelry atelier, with every element of the piece created entirely by hand.

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The majestic lion is carved into rutilated quartz, a powerful gemstone said to connect the physical world with the spiritual realm, and flecked with naturally occurring golden strands. One paw of the lion rests majestically on a diamond star, as though like Mademoiselle, it has the universe in its hand. If you peer carefully through the lion’s crystalline body, you see a constellation crafted from 18K gold, the celestial map of the Leo, the astrological sign of Mademoiselle. Finally, a 32­carat cushion-cut yellow diamond marks the 1932 collection and birth of CHANEL High Jewelry.

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Gabrielle Chanel in her apartment at 31 rue Cambon, with one of her omnipresent lion sculptures, 1957.