Some pieces of Juliana announce themselves immediately.
You see the familiar stones, the familiar construction, perhaps a design you already recognize from the books or the IsItJulianaJewelry database, and there isn’t much mystery left.
And then there are pieces like this.
At first glance, this elaborate necklace, brooch and earring set doesn’t look much like the Juliana jewelry most collectors picture. There are sculptural lion heads, openwork hearts, fleur-de-lis motifs, pearl drops and an ornate book chain that gives the whole piece an almost old-world feeling.
It is exactly the sort of jewelry that reminds us how broad DeLizza & Elster’s work really was.
The Lions Were the Clue
What makes this set especially interesting isn’t simply how unusual it looks.
It is the components.
The dimensional lion heads used on the necklace and earrings are forms also found among pieces from Mr. DeLizza’s personal collection. So are the small openwork heart components incorporated into the necklace.
Even the distinctive book chain provides another connection. The same chain is found on the Moroccan matrix elephant belt attributed to DeLizza & Elster.
None of those details has to carry the identification alone. Together, however, they create a much stronger trail back to D&E.
And suddenly the unusual begins to make sense.
Look at Everything Going On Here
The necklace alone has a tremendous amount to take in.
At the center is a large fleur-de-lis set with a glowing watermelon rhinestone. On either side are the lion heads, each finished with a faux pearl drop. Openwork hearts and additional decorative elements hang from that wonderful book chain.
Then D&E carried those elements into the rest of the set.
The matching clip earrings use the same sculptural lions with long pearl drops, while the brooch repeats the fleur-de-lis and watermelon rhinestone combination from the center of the necklace.
It is dramatic without being the kind of rhinestone-heavy design we usually associate with Juliana.
And that may be exactly why it remained unidentified for so long.
Juliana Doesn’t Always Look Like “Juliana”
One of the things I enjoy most about studying DeLizza & Elster is finding jewelry that stretches our idea of what the company made.
If we only look for the familiar five-link bracelets, colorful navettes and elaborate rhinestone brooches, we miss an enormous part of the story.
D&E was a manufacturer. They had access to a tremendous assortment of components, stones and findings, and their jewelry could look very different depending upon what they were creating.
Sometimes the clue isn’t the overall appearance at all.
Sometimes it is a lion.
Or a little heart.
Or even a length of book chain.
Can I Tempt You?
This is one of those sets I can keep looking at and continue finding another detail.
The lions are wonderful. The watermelon stones glow against the antiqued gold-tone metal. The pearl drops add movement. And the fleur-de-lis gives the entire set a wonderfully dramatic centerpiece.
But for me, the best part is the story behind it.
A piece that didn’t immediately look like Juliana eventually led us right back to DeLizza & Elster through the very components they used.
And that makes this one especially hard to resist.
See the Juliana Lion & Fleur-de-Lis Set
Listed in the IsItJulianaJewelry database as #9381.
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