It was a moonlit night...

Once upon a moonlit night
Two hearts blended
Love surrendered
With embracing arms
Remember


(borrowed from a song by Frank Sinatra)

In Antiquity, as well as in the Middle Ages people believed that the cosmos is reflected in gemstones. Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist traditions mingled with Pagan legends led to the association of certain precious stones with different days, months, astrological signs, Tribes of Israel and Apostles but also with healing powers for social, physiological, metaphysical and even medical conditions.

The moonstone is assigned to the planets Neptune and Venus. The combination of moonstone with Venus is interesting as still today it's considered to be a woman's stone. The moonstone is the birthstone or month stone for June. Moonstone should protect travellers, especially from danger by sea, reconciles lovers, brings good fortune, inner growth and strength. (Not that we necessarily promote or believe such claims, but we think they make for interesting conversation.)

In semi-precious stones there are gems and gems but this cabochon cut moonstone is the gem of gems. This top quality fine blue moonstone shows an incredible "three-dimensional" depth of color, which one will see clearly only when playfully tilting the stone and moving it. Transparant with a violet hue when playing with it in the light. Blue moonstones in fine qualities are becoming increasingly short in supply and push up the prices accordingly and to find one in this size is even more rare. Executed in platinum with six old mine brilliant cut diamonds in line pointing towards the moonstone, this jewel is an example how frugal and yet beautiful Art Deco can be.

Click the picture to see a close-up of this beautiful moonstone pendant.

Antiqualy yours,
The Adin team
www.adin.be


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We saw it through the grapevine

ANTWERP, August 30 (Reuters) – Rumours have reached us that the Gardener of Adin is offering the above pictured bar brooch at a reduced price to Adin's followers. When being confronted with this the Gardener confessed. He told us that the price of the brooch had been curtailed by €1,000 which is almost $1,500! In a later statement he testified that this was done in an attempt to lower the presence of crystallized carbon in the Garden of Adin to meet with the standards as set in the Kyoto protocol.

Click the picture to see a close-up of this magnificent bar brooch.

Antiqualy yours,
The Adin team
www.adin.be

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Sleeping Beauty Pendant

ANTWERP, August 23 (Reuters) – Once upon a time in the Garden of Adin, not so far far away from here, the Gardener was pruning the roses when he stumbled upon this sleeping beauty pendant. It must have been asleep there for some 100 years and just waiting to be awoken. We hope that we can be of assistance in its desire to be worn by a princess.

Click the picture to see a close-up of this sleeping beauty pendant.

Antiqualy yours,
The Adin team
www.adin.be


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How Art Deco got its name

One of the major design events of the 1920s, if not the most important, was “L'exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes” which is French for “The International Exposition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts”. This World's fair was held in Paris, France from April to October 1925.

The term Art Deco was derived by shortening the words Arts Décoratifs in the title of this exposition and described designs in terms of a broad decoratively "modern" style, influenced strongly by Decorative Cubism. One of the members of the Admission Committee for the jewelry department of this trail-blazing fair was the maker of the pin we show here, Mr. George Fouquet.

George Fouquet (1862-1957) is recognized as one of the very few and best known artist jewelers of his time. He won many international awards and worked closely together with artists of his time, like Alfons Mucha.

George Fouquet's jewelry can be found in collections of many important museums all over the world; from the Victorian & Albert in London to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. He bequeathed his archive and designs to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris

The so-called jabot-pin by George Fouquet we show here, is as close as one can get to the source of pure Art Deco jewelry.

Click the picture to get to the descriptive page of this pin.

Antiqualy yours,
The Adin team
www.adin.be

P.s. Perhaps you know someone who might be interested in receiving our mails? Forward them this mail and they can subscribe themselves at: our subscription page

See our:
Art Deco jewelry
latest acquisitions
complete inventory

or read our explanations on:
Art Deco style
extensive antique jewelry glossary
antique jewelry style overview