Designed as a swan, the body set with a baroque pearl, accented with circular- and single-cut diamonds and circular-cut pink sapphire eyes, signed Verdura. 

Please note the pearl has not been tested for natural origin..

Bibliography: Corbett, Patricia. Verdura: The life and work of a master jeweler, pg. 140-141. Images of similar swan brooches on pg. 142 and 143.

Note: By the 1950s, Fulco Verdura had established himself as one of the leading jewellers in New York with a clientele including the most stylish and fashionable American women at the time, including Mrs. Paul Mellon, Diana Vreeland and the Cushing sisters. Verdura’s contemporary, Truman Capote, dubbed the most elevated of these women ‘swans’. New York socialites embraced the label and purchased swan brooches from Verdura to mark their membership in this exclusive sorority. Featuring a large baroque pearl and referencing eternal themes from Antiquity such as love, the swan brooches became an emblem of the New York élite.

Sotheby's. Fine Jewels, Londres, 06 juin 2016, 10:30 AM