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16, Boulevard De Magenta • Precious Set with Burma Rubies

By A Mystery Man Writer

Precious Set with Burma Rubies & Diamonds Set in Gold by Paul Lévy, Paris ca. 1940
What a glowing red! This set of brooch, earclips and ring comes from Paris, from the turbulent years of Art Deco. Warmly shining rose gold is laid in dynamic sweeps, sometimes smoothly polished, sometimes worked as if knitted. Precious rubies are set everywhere. They are untreated rubies from Burma, wonderfully transparent and of the best quality. The set, a so-called demi-parure, is signed. It bears the hallmark of Paul Lévy, who founded his store in Paris at 16 Boulevard de Magenta in February 1919. Bold, so soon after World War I, yet Lévy soon stood high in the public's favor. He created work for large firms such as van Cleef, but also sold under his own name as well as under his wife's last name, Sasportas. He created works in the taste of Art Deco in all its varieties, but also in historical styles, depending on the wishes of his customers. The combination of rubies, a few diamonds and rose gold, as well as the sculptural design language of the set, refers to the late years of Art Deco, the so-called "Retro Style" of the late 1930s and 1940s. The jewellery of this period is no longer white, as it was at the beginning of Art Deco, but revels in warm tones and large, sculptural shapes. Often the designs look like swaths of fabric billowed by the wind, full of dramatic dynamism: a little of this can be seen, for example, in the design of the brooch. Paul Lévy died on September 2, 1940, so he did not have to experience the Aryanization of his business by the German occupation. We therefore date the set to these late years of his life. Independent appraisals confirming the quality of the materials are included with the jewelry.