The Panther clip brooch is made for a glamorous woman, the Duchess of Windsor, a great fan of Cartier by Jeanne Toussaint at Paris in 1949. Toussaint, who became Cartier's director of high jewelry in 1933, it perhaps best known for breathing life into the house's panther emblem, …show more content…
Felines became realistic, inhabitants of a colorful, joyful fantasy made of precious stones.
The craftsmanship of this Panther Clip Brooch is close to perfection, the regal panther is crouched in a life-like pose on a perfectly round 152.35-carats Kashmir sapphire cabochon, the legs and tail of the tiger articulated to move with the body, the tail hanging majestically out, the body in a composed curl, with piercing two pear-shaped yellow diamonds emerald eyes. There is something that is magical about the tiger that even in the form of jewelry gives us protective presence.
The Duchess of Windsor’s Panther clip brooch remains the most iconic of these animal-themed pieces. I wonder whether Jeanne Toussaint, who oversaw the making of the majestic design, was secretly aware of the similarity between the panther’s expression and the Duchess’s character. After all, hadn’t Duchess, through strength of will, managed to place herself, in her own eyes, on top of the