A Treasure Trove Of One-Of-A-Kind Jewellery At The Cartier Beautés Du Monde

Cartier’s Beautés du Monde showcase of one-of-a-kind high jewellery pieces arrived in Singapore on 12 July 2022. Hosted at Capella in Sentosa, the exhibition—first presented in Madrid's Palacio de Liria—is the celebration of founder Louis Cartier, his legacy, and his poetic spirit.

On the history behind this jewellery presentation, which began at the turn of the 20th century, a statement from the maison reads, “The Cartier brothers always had eyes for this world and its treasures,”.

And with Louis Cartier’s visionary foresight, the jeweller “pioneered a new style that was at once distinctive and universal, a reinvention of the classical tradition, marked by a spirit of openness and curiosity for all forms of beauty”.

Notably, the Beautés du Monde often also serves as a tribute to the rich heritage of foreign cultures (Russian, Islamic, and Asian), with the use of their symbolic and decorative motifs on jewellery styles that exemplify their aesthetic splendour. 

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Below are three standout pieces from this year’s Cartier Beautés du Monde.

Pankha

Crafted in platinum, with the use of sapphires, rubies, and emeralds, and accompanied with branches of diamonds, the Pankha set is the centrepiece of the ’Tutti Frutti’ collection of high jewellery at this year’s showcase. 

As seen here, the use of the trio of precious stones in the Panka is meant to evoke “the graceful, tasteful polychromy of Indian enamel” and remains an emblem of the jeweller’s heritage since its introduction in the 1920s.

Nitescence 

This all diamond-and-white-gold set features a transformable necklace that can be taken apart and fashioned as a tiara and bracelet.

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The necklace also comes with a 15.05 carat D IF Type Ila cushion-shaped diamond pendant, with square- and triangular-shaped diamonds, baguette- and brilliant-cut diamonds. This set also includes a pair of pendant earrings and a ring.

Iwana

Consisting of a necklace, a pair of earrings, and a ring, the Iwana is a celebration of Colombian emeralds.

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Here, the emeralds are finished in the cabochon cut to highlight the inclusions that naturally occur in the precious gem. The presence of these inclusions—which should not be classified as simply imperfections—is often referred to as ‘jardin’ for its intricate patterns that resemble a garden. When observed with a trained eye, the origin of an emerald can be identified by its inclusions as no two sets have the same pattern.