Joden Girl
Baubles, Bling and Flying Things
Bees. Everyone knows about the Rosenthal bees. These clever little golden darlings were created in the 1960s and 1970s by Herbert Rosenthal. They were crafted in a wide variety of sizes and each one was set with fine gemstones of every color. There were diamond bees, sapphire bees, ruby bees… I’ve even seen one with an opal body. So popular were these stingers that jewelers everywhere tried their hand at a copycat model. Even though Rosenthal had secured a patent on his original design, when he attempted to sue those who had stolen his craft – he ultimately lost the fight. But did he really? Or was it the very thing that clinched the highly collectible nature of a true Rosenthal bee?
In the past few weeks, Joden has been buzzing with chatter about these flying insects. I blogged about them before in Queen Bee; a few of you discovered that archive recently and reached out in search of a bee of your own. At the moment – we are sold out of bees. But imagine my delight when I found this gem!
This colorful beauty has been part of the Joden inventory for a bit – and recently, I selected it for Joden Girl. With wings made of superbly striated malachite and a cabochon pink coral body, this butterfly exudes happiness. A series of diamonds decorate the edges of the wings, the lower portion of the body and each antennae for a combined total of 1.00 carat. All of this is enclosed within an 18 karat yellow gold frame.
I pride myself on the research I put into each blog. I love digging for quirky, unusual jewels. I spend hours searching for relevant history and symbolism. With my loupe in hand, I scour every nook and cranny of my chosen piece so that I can share it all with you. Today, I flipped this butterfly over and there it was! Right before my very eyes, something I had never noticed before. Carefully etched into a small golden strap on the back of the coral are two marks… one is “18K” and the other is an east/west diamond shape with two letters inside… HR. Herbert Rosenthal!
We may not have any Rosenthal bees in our hive, but we’ve uncovered a gem that’s just as good, maybe even better – a Rosenthal butterfly. Sometimes the inventory at Joden even takes us by surprise! Fly away with this stunning brooch for just $3,250.00.
“Go to our site and look, then come to Joden and touch”
Written by Carrie Martin
Photos by Dana Jerpe
