Greek Revival Necklaces

Circa 1960s, 22k, by Ilias Lalaounis, Greece. This High-karat gold necklace is the perfect everyday accessory. The Mycenaean lion's head motif is central to Lalaounis' most famous a...

Antique Austrian- Hungarian or Bohemian Fine Pendant with a locket, decorated with fine floral engravings, Black Enamel and Seed Pearls. All metal parts made of solid 830 Silver. Gil...

Antique Pendant with a miniature painting 16mm x 8 mm of the ancient Greek Goddess of harvest and fertility Demeter. The painting is concealed within a miniature frame made of gilt S...

Beautiful late 70s Givenchy navy blue marbleized and gold perfume bottle necklace. Gold Givenchy logo at bottom left corner. Tassel attached to the bottom. There is no perfume left i...

This 18k yellow gold Lalaounis double rams head lariat necklace is a truly magnificent example of the esteemed Greek designers offerings. From clasp to tip, the necklace is comprise...

Truly a bold statement piece in brilliant 18 karat yellow gold made in Greece by House of Zolotas, well known for Greek antiquity inspired designs and expert at melding contemporary...

Antique Danish Pendant / Locket made of solid 18K Yellow Gold. Detailed hand hammered and engraved ornament of Eternity Knot in miniature proportions on ...

Robert Goosens, the French haute-couture Chanel-favorite parurier who enjoyed reinterpreting ancient and antique styles of jewelry with rock crystal and faux stones, also collaborated with Madame Alix Gres. Relevant to this statement necklace, the Parisian theatrical-costume designer, who founded the French fashion-house Maison Gres, commissioned Goosens to make spiral-wire adornments for her couture gowns. This handmade hammered brass wire choker necklace with five dropped en-tremblant pendants is decorated with unique colorful beads and wrapped wire. The piece dates between 1969-1971 based on similar unsigned spiraled-wire metal jewelry without goldsmithing marks in the museum collection of TheMet (see our photo), which acquired it from Maison Givenchy founder Hubert de Givenchy, who was one of most supportive fans of Gres. Like the legendary sculptural clothing designs of Madame Gres, this necklace was inspired by Greco-Roman costumes, while its sculpted shapes by Goosens reference her signature curvilinear fabric techniques that earned her the sobriquet of "the master of the wrapped and draped dress". Goosens (1927-2016), nicknamed Monsieur Bijou, also made jewelry inspired by other periods of antiquity to compliment the couture clothing of Coco Chanel, Cristobal Balenciaga, Elsa Schiaparelli, Christian Dior, and Yves Saint Laurent. After Goosens collaborated with Gres, he revisited golden spiral designs with Saint Laurent. Similar to the free-flowing fabric manipulated in Gres gowns, this hand-shaped necklace that we photographed in sunlight is a study in motion that drapes across a curvy cleavage. Adding drama to this necklace below its wire choker, the top teetering-wire pendant is a twisted and hammered horizontal double spiral, which is a Hellenistic symbol of life and transformation suggesting the breasts of a goddess of fertility and motherhood. Yet distinctly Goosens, 18 hand-cut and hand-dyed "ancient-Roman-blue" rock-crystal beads are wire-strung to weight a second tier of two separate vertical double-spiral pendants. On each, a wrapped-wire tube divides the blue beads. Between these vertical pendants in two tiers, the central vertical pendants each feature a one-of-a-kind multicolor bead (yellow/blue/red/black/white) in two lengths with abstract organic patterns recalling ancient Italian glasswork. Four more blue beads bracket these larger colorful beads. An additional 10 blue beads and 5 wire tubes decorate the bottom looped wire pendant, as well as the bottom of the wire choker. Like the hammered-wire jewelry designs of modern artist Alexander Calder, the creative complex construction of this necklace surprisingly required no metalsmith techniques, such as soldering or casting, just great skill with a jewelry pliers and hammer. For a bigger picture of couture clothing by Madame Gres during the decade beginning in 1969, she notably designed many museum-collected one-color silk-taffeta draped long gowns with empire waists and simple high collars or geometric cut-outs. Remarkably, the focal points for some of these unique dresses were at the wrists, from where long pouf sleeves voluminously droop around the hands to nearly the floor like two enormous long-petaled flowers. If paired with this equally downward-focused and balanced necklace from this same period, its bold Greco-Roman elements would have pulled a viewer's gaze of the dress from floor to face. Although there is no significant provenance for this necklace, hammered brass and tinted rock crystal were among the few materials repeatedly associated with Goosens from 1969-71. For example, in his overlapping interior-decor collections based on themes of waterlilies or foliage, Goosens hammered gilt brass wire and sheets (see our closeup photo) to represent plant parts or he wired rock-crystal beads to appear as tiny fruits. While the two multicolor glass or resin beads in this necklace are atypical, the combination of blue, yellow and red is a palette that the designer used for other pieces of rock-crystal jewelry and he created many kinds of multicolor faux stones with glass or resin paste, such as faux Tibetan turquoise including black and white. According to journalism based on interviews with Goosens, he often acquired unusual stones and glass for inspiration during his extensive travels exploring museum-collected antiquities. Since Maison Goosens was acquired in 2005 by Maison Chanel, it opened the Parisian showroom Galerie Goosens and associated shops to sell many kinds of reproductions and reimagined works by the founder, which fortunately does not suit the completely handmade elements of this necklace. So this couture piece remains one-of-a-kind. If desiring a vintage haute-couture original by Robert Goosens, we recommend perusing the Maison Goosens website so that a reproduction with a contemporary signature is not mistakenly purchased. Madame Gres (1903-1993) was born Germaine Emelie Krebs, but initially identified her fashion designs with the pseudonym Alix and later Alix Barton...

Antique French Pendant / Locket in solid 18K White Gold inlaid with a hand-carved cameo of Maenad carved on banded Red Onyx with great accuracy and precision. The color of the stone is dark Red with upper layers of creamy beige color. Made in France ca 1920s - 1930s. Hallmarked with French 18K Gold standard hallmark/head of an Eagle. Measures 52 mm x 32mm x 17 mm deep. Weight: 18.2 grams Fine used condition. Very minor dents on the back side. Secure/tight hinges and closure that close with a click.. A small ring attached to the bail is an adapter that can be used to hang this locket on the wall. Note: You buy just one pendant without a chain. The second pendant of Sapho on the last image will not be included. In Greek mythology, Maenads (/ˈmiːnædz/; Ancient Greek: μαινάδες [maiˈnades]) were the female followers of Dionysus and the most significant members of the Thiasus, the god's retinue. Their name translates as "raving ones". Maenads were known as Bassarids, Bacchae /ˈbækiː/, or Bacchantes /ˈbækənts, bəˈkænts, -ˈkɑːnts/ in Roman mythology after the penchant of the equivalent Roman god, Bacchus, to wear a bassaris or fox skin...

The Emperors Necklace, an early Victorian hardstone cameo necklace, the twelve oval chalcedony cameo plaques, each carved with the profile of a Roman ...

lias Lalaounis 18 Karat Gold Malachite Choker Necklace. This unique 8mm wide hinged choker features a single malachite bead set in one of the ends. Both ends of this choker and near ...

An Important Victorian hardstone intaglio necklace, composed of eight Roman intaglios depicting seven of the Olympian gods, with a central drop depi...

A beautiful and colorful link necklace of emerald, yellow sapphire, pink tourmaline, and tanzanite baroque shaped nuggets weighing a total of 415.70 carats, finished with caps and li...

Featuring handmade double-spiral filigree links, this vintage collar choker necklace was created by tightly twisting fine silver wire, which was ...

This fine early roll seal is carved is carved from a translucent sardonyx with narrow stripes in a great variety of colours. The bead is engraved with a scorpio on the reverse. The ...

This beautifully detailed estate cross is crafted from rich 18 karat yellow gold with intricate open filigree work and navy blue enameling for a truly lovely sight to behold! Impress...

- 14K. yellow gold brooch / pendant with a shell cameo "Madonna with flower hair" - Dimensions: 52 x 44 x 6 mm - Weight: 25.20 grams - Germany ca 1930

Stunning multi-strand pearl necklace with important hand hammered 18 Karat gold balls. The pearl strands are highlighted with smaller rice shape gold inserts. The earrings are1 8 Kar...

Drop shape filigree flower pendant handcrafted in 22Kt yellow gold featuring hand Carved Amethyst and brilliant cut Diamonds. Carved flowers, fine and ...