It is one of the most famous private collections of Cartier jewelry and is on display in Washington in the former home of the woman who collected it: Marjorie Merriweather Post (1887-1973). Long considered one of the richest women in the world thanks to a fortune of 250 million dollars, achieved with the expansion of the Postum Cereal Company inherited from her father, from 1920 to 1960 she purchased highly valuable pieces from the Parisian jeweler, some of which represent Cartier’s most important production. Most are large and daring jewels from an artistic and artisanal point of view: the Art Deco models, typical of the maison, alternate with other objects of more exotic inspiration. Like the 1928 shoulder brooch composed of seven carved Indian emeralds, one of which is believed to date back to the 17th century of the Mughal Empire. And then the Indianized Art Deco necklace with 24 Colombian drop-cut emeralds, each surmounted by another pearl-shaped emerald, acclaimed by many as the French goldsmith’s finest creation, and the Maximilian emerald ring, so called because the stone was worn by the Habsburg emperor of Mexico, killed by revolutionaries. Both are owned by the Smithsonian Institute, which also lent them on the occasion of the anniversary of the Cartier Foundation celebrated with an exhibition in Paris. But this is the first time that the Post jewels, including the Art Deco diamond and sapphire necklace with rigorous geometric shapes and the three strands of natural Caro Yamaoka pearls with a large platinum clasp and a cascade of diamonds, are brought together and, moreover, contextualized in portraits, photos and clothes. If you pass through Washington, don’t miss it.
