Italian duke Fulco di Verdura had the luxurious ancestry and excellent taste that helped him to create an amazing jewelry.
Coco Chanel
Rago presents jewelry from the estate of antique dealer, writer, and editor Carol Prisant (1938–2021).
Ms. Prisant had an eye for art and antiques from a very young age and was entirely self-taught. After marrying and moving to New York with her husband, she worked as a decorative arts vendor in the 26th Street Antiques Market and participated yearly in the Manhattan Antique Show in addition to owning Locust Valley Antiques in Long Island for 10 years. In 1989, she became the New York editor of the British magazine The World of Interiors, a position she would hold until 2020. Actively involved in the world of antiques and interior design, she sat on the board of the Raynham Hall Museum on Long Island and the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities. She was also a member of the Manhattan-based Appraisers Association of America. Her writing became a staple in these circles. Prisant wrote articles for Martha Stewart Living, House Beautiful, and New York magazine and was the author of several books including Antiques Roadshow Primer and Antiques Roadshow Collectibles. Her antiquing column “Good, Better, Best” for House Beautiful would go on to be adapted into a book of its own.
A longtime friend of Ms. Prisant, Christine Pittel, remarked about Prisant’s interior design skills that she “curated her own environment like a work of art.” The same can be said for her impeccable taste in fine jewels. From a stunning sapphire ring in her favorite hue, pink, to elegant brooches and refined earrings, bracelets, and necklaces, her sense of style and eye for quality is evident in every piece from her collection.
The birth of Verdura jewelry is the stuff of myths and legends, beginning with Fulco Santostefano della Cerda, Duke of Verdura and Marquis of Murata la Cerda. The Sicilian nobleman rubbed shoulders with countless A-listers, none more important than Coco Chanel herself, whom he had met at a party thrown by composer Cole Porter. He traveled with Chanel to Ravenna, Italy in 1930 and it was there that, inspired by jewel-toned Byzantine mosaics, the two designed a pair of cuffs featuring semi-precious stones set in gold. These Art Deco-style Maltese cuff bracelets became a signature of Chanel’s style and by the time Verdura traveled to New York in 1939 prepared to open a jewelry boutique, he was sufficiently socially connected. Cole Porter and Vincent Astor provided financial support and the rest, as they say, is history.
In the following decades Verdura’s success steadily grew, his jewelry gracing the likes of Greta Garbo, Tallulah Bankhead, Joan Crawford, Katherine Hepburn and members of the Astor, Paley, and Whitney families. He redesigned Chanel’s jewelry line with both costume and precious jewelry, including a Maltese Cross bracelet, which would become one of his signature motifs. A witty, erudite, and charming man, Verdura was a welcomed guest at high-society parties which helped him to maintain and grow his clientele and in 1954, he opened a second location in Paris.
Verdura was self-taught and had developed a keen eye for color and design via his love for Renaissance art combined with memories from his fairytale aristocratic childhood, which included elaborate costume parties, lush gardens, and exotic animals. His jewelry was fashionable, yet rooted in historical motifs (such as the Maltese cross), and characterized by bold, rich colors and shapes: voluminous bows and knots, cabochon-cut gemstones, and curvaceous shells and leaves. He retired in 1973 and sold the business and his archives to his associate Joseph Alfano. The company was eventually purchased in 1985 by Ward Ladrigan, a Verdura devotee, and it continues operation today in New York under the leadership of Nico Ladrigan, producing high-quality jewelry from Verdura’s archival sketches.
Auction Results Verdura
