Pure Gold Pendant with an Original Turquoise. Early Work of the Arist Georges Weil. England ca. 1960

Pure Gold Pendant with an Original Turquoise. Early Work of the Arist Georges Weil. England ca. 1960

Early work by the artists as a Jewelry designer, which later influenced his sculptural works. 

Weil made a heavy pendant with a particularly strong presence. He combined sculpting in pure gold to form the face of a woman, with an original old Turquoise stone. With original gold and English hallmarks.   

Turquoise stone: Originally, it comes from Persia and its color is a bluish-green. In Aztec culture in Mexico during the 16th century, the stone was used to decorate ritual objects, and in the 19th century, the play Cleopatra made the stone fashionable.

Turquoise is one of the oldest stones, and one of its most common uses is for making amulets and jewelry. The turquoise stone has its own powers, and in Persia, people still believe that it protects against the Evil Eye. It was customary to weave the stone into the reins and tails of horses and camels to protect the Persians. The stone is found near the surface, mostly in dry areas.

Biography:

Weil was born in 1938 in Vienna and his family was one of the last to escape via Antwerp to London in 1939.

Although not much is known of his early life, it is known that Weil briefly attended London’s St. Martins School of Art in 1956. He studied sculpturing and jewellery design, describing himself first as a sculptor and only then as a jewellery designer.

Sculptural flair can be seen in his jewellery designs which are modernist, abstract and asymmetrical. In 1960s and 70s jewellery, the single most important element was the overall stylistic impact of the piece and not the intrinsic value of the diverse elements used. Weil used precious stones, both cut and uncut. Silver and gold could be used together with diamonds and less valuable, inorganic or organic material such as pearls or wood.

Georges Weil was a talented, autodidact, most colorful artist. Collectors of Weil's works included Frank Sinatra, Sammy David Jr., Peter Sellers, Queen Elizabeth of England, and the Hollywood Queen - Elizabeth Taylor.

One art critic of the Illustrated London News, wishing to express his appreciation of Weil's work, went so far as to declare, “Fabergé objects, exquisite as they are, and superb as their workmanship is, are really no more than expensive toys – Weil’s pieces are works of art".

Provenance: The Weil Family collection. London-England. 

Weight:	82 gr
Measurement:	4.5 x 5.5 cm