Designed as an articulated floral branch, set with cushion-shaped, circular- and rose-cut diamonds, the flower heads set en tremblant, mounted in silver, yellow and pink gold,

SAKURA

Sakura/Cherry Blossom, Prunus serrulata, the ornamental Cherry tree had been highly regarded by the Japanese since the Heian Period 794-1191, where the nobility would🌳 gather and celebrate under the blossoms, emulating their Chinese counterparts.  It was during the Hein period that the Sakura tree began to replace the Plum tree as the favoured species in Japan.  Revered for their beauty the blossoming begins in Okinawa in January reaching Kyoto and Tokyo towards the end of March, where Hanami festivals are held to celebrate the flowering Cherry and its transient beauty.

In Japan the short flowering of the Sakura is seen to exemplify the transient nature of life. An enduring metaphor for the mutability of human existence often associated with the Buddhist influence embodied in the concept of mono no aware, dating back to the 18th Century scholar Motoori Norinaga.  Richly symbolic the Cherry blossom has become infused in Japanese aesthetics and is frequently visually depicted in Japanese arts.

 

Please note that the brooch bears maker's marks for René Lalique and is probably 10 to 15 years earlier than the date stated in the catalogue. In 1885 Lalique took over the workshop of Jules Destape and was creating jewellery for other houses such as Vever, Cartier and Boucheron among others. French assay marks for gold, maker's marks R L with a sword. Diamonds bright and lively stones of mixed quality. Three small diamonds deficient on flower heads near the stems, hardly visible when worn. Two rose-cut diamond set caps accompany this lot in order to cover the stem of the branches when separated into three brooches and one additional pin with two screws. Tarnish and scratches to metal consistent with age. Well preserved, rare and impressive piece. In good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Please note that colour, clarity and weight of gemstones are statements of opinion only and not statements of fact by Sotheby's. We do not guarantee, and are not responsible for any certificate from a gemological laboratory that may accompany the property. We do not guarantee that watches are in working order. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue, in particular to the Notice regarding the treatment and condition of gemstones and to the Notice regarding import of Burmese jadeite and rubies into the US.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

JAPONISM

After the Meiji restoration in 1868 the Empire of Japan ended a long period of isolation, opening up trade to the West and adopting Western ideas.  Many Japanese works of art subsequently flowed out to the Western Imperial powers who exhibited an eager enthusiasm for all things Eastern.  Japonism or Japonisme, which was originally used by the French author Jules Claretie in his book 'L'Art Francais en 1872', has subsequently been used to describe work⛎s of art influenced by the principles of Japanese art.

The contact and assimilation of the Japanese aesthetic on to Western art filtered through to all the applied arts from furniture, textiles and jewellery to graphic design which in tern gave fruition to the Aesthetꦏic movement, later merging into the Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau movements. 🅷;

During the 1860s and 1870s various Japanese goods came to Europe via Holland and France, while many International collectors, writers and art critics visited Japan, publishing articles on Japanese aesthet🌜ics. Among them the critic Theodore Duret and the British collector William Anderson whose collection of Japanese paintings and prints was later acquired by the British Museum.

Several international exhibitions where instrumental in publicising the interest in all things 'oriental', in London 1862, 1871 and 1873 and Paris in 1878, while entrepreneurs and designers such as Arthur Lazenby Lཧiberty, and Christopher Dresser, helped to infuse the new movement to a wider publi𝓀c.  Dresser with his geometric forms ultimately inspired by Japanese artefacts, Liberty as one of the first interior decorating shops which helped to publicise the interest in Japonism to an ever expanding affluent Middle class.

Leading artists of the day where also heavily influenced by the new trend producing works in the manner of Japanese works in homage to the Japanese aesthetic, from Monet, Van Gogh, Gaugin, Klimt, Renoir and Rossetti.  While in the musical world Puccini's tragic opera Madame Butterfly, 1904, with its blending of Eastern and Western themes, and Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta The Mikado, 1885, a satire on the British Class system set against a Japanese backdrop, illustrate the Western fascination with all things Japanese.  To quote Henri Verver jeweller and historian in his monumental three volume compendium of 19th Century French jewellery 'La Bijouterie Francaise au XIXe Siecle' published between 1906 and 1908,  "the skill of the Japanese in reproducing nature is nothing compared with the way in which they have drawn from it for decorative purposes, without the example of these masters, the fabrics of Liberty, the wallpapers of Walter Crane and the porcelains of Copenhagen would probably never have existed".