Art jewelry makes a unique gift for her.
These statement-making studs nod to an elaborate parure (matching jewelry set) in The Met’s European Sculpture and Decorative Arts holdings. The Museum’s astounding 15-piece collection, made in France around 1810, boasts cut-steel studs that mimic faceted diamonds. Cut steel was fashionable in 18th- and 19th-century jewelry—similar examples were acquired by King Louis XVIII, and Napoleon, for his wife Archduchess Marie Louise of Austria. Somewhat surprisingly, the material wasn’t necessarily a less expensive alternative to precious metals and gemstones.
