Barbara Anton (American, 1926–2007), Bracelet, 1960s, gold, pearls, diamonds

Audio Description

This bracelet was designed in the 1960s by Barbara Anton, an American jeweler who lived from 1926–2007.

This bracelet resembles a wrist corsage of a single lily. The petals of the flower curl back and are of polished gold. They each have an open slit in which alternate rows of small pearls and faceted diamonds are set. Pearls of varying sizes and small diamonds are mounted on the ends of gold rods that project out of the center of the flower. The bracelet itself has a darker patina and forms the leaves of the flower. They are embellished with raised, undulating lines and globules of polished gold.

Label Copy

This bracelet was designed in the 1960s by Barbara Anton, an American jeweler who lived from 1926–2007.

Drama and dimensionality describe this large-scale, sculptural bracelet that sits like a corsage on the wrist. It takes on the shape of a single bloom, perhaps mimicking an Asiatic lily with its dramatically curled petals and assertive stamens projecting from the center. Each petal is perforated with insertions that alternate pearls and faceted diamonds. In contrast to the highly polished gold of the flower, the bracelet itself has a darker patina and its leaf shapes are embellished with raised tendrils and globules of gold.

One of the few recognized female jewelers of this period, Anton’s work included unconventional forms: leg garters that could be transformed into hair ornaments, a gold and pearl-studded breastplate to be worn by a bare-chested man, a pinkie-finger ring with one side smooth, the other textured, and she advocated for coordinated but mismatched earrings, much like wearing various rings at one time.

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