Iconic fashion house Bulgari harnesses the seductive power of colorful lush gemstones in its latest High Jewelry and watch offering, Eden: The Garden of Wonders. Unveiled in June during a two-day event studded with shining stars Anne Hathaway, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Carla Bruni at the Italian embassy in Paris, the collection features 140 jeweled treasures, including more than 30 dedicated to the beguiling emerald.
Associated with rebirth and fertility, the verdant gemstone has been the stuff of Bulgari legend since the 1960s, when Liz Taylor wowed the paparazzi with her spectacular emerald-and-diamond suite, a famous gift from her on-again, off-again spouse, Richard Burton. More recently, the brand made a splash with a jaw-dropping 93.83-carat cabochon centerpiece for the “Serpenti Hypnotic Emerald” necklace, draped on Zendaya at the Venice International Film Festival. (The hunt for the stunner was documented in “Inside the Dream,” which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival this fall.)
Eden: The Garden of Wonders has more than its share of precious knockouts, including the “Emerald Glory,” conjuring an interwoven drape of icy lace, like a spider’s web, cascading around the neck. Much like Taylor’s pendant-brooch, the necklace multitasks seamlessly as a tiara or choker. It took more than 3,000 hours of handiwork to realize this versatile masterpiece, dazzling with more than 220 carats of diamonds and accented by 11 pear-shaped Colombian emeralds.
“Tribute to Paris” is an elegant homage to the City of Light. Artisans clocked 2,000 hours creating the necklace, which showcases a 35.53-carat oval emerald surrounded by exquisite inlays of emeralds and diamonds, nodding to the Eiffel Tower’s famed silhouette.
Another standout necklace, “Emerald Venus,” was inspired by the capelvenere, a fern whose Italian name translates to “Venus’ hair.” Branches set with emerald beads and diamonds seem to grow around a 20-carat, octagonal-cut Colombian emerald centerpiece. The head-turner is paired with a high-jewelry cuff watch that mixes more than 74 carats of vivid emeralds with baguette, pavé and round brilliant-cut diamonds. To top it off, the glittering timepiece features a white-gold dial under a faceted, minty-green tourmaline cover.
