René Lalique Serpents Corsage
3D model based on his famous design, fully sculpted with ZBrush, rendered with Keyshot
This corsage ornament is one of the paradigms of René Lalique’s jewellery production, not only for the mastery of its execution, as for the theme chosen. Reptiles were a source of inspiration to which Lalique returned throughout his life not only for jewellery, but also for his glass, bronzes, etc.
The corsage ornament is made up of nine serpents entwined to form a knot from which the bodies of the other eight fall in a cascade, the ninth rising in the centre, at the top of the jewel. The reptiles, in the attack position, have their mouths open from which strings of pearls were hung as was apparently the case with a similar corsage ornament (the whereabouts of which are unknown), which was highlighted at the 1900 Paris Exposition and reproduced in a publication of the period.
The corsage ornament is made up of nine serpents entwined to form a knot from which the bodies of the other eight fall in a cascade, the ninth rising in the centre, at the top of the jewel. The reptiles, in the attack position, have their mouths open from which strings of pearls were hung as was apparently the case with a similar corsage ornament (the whereabouts of which are unknown), which was highlighted at the 1900 Paris Exposition and reproduced in a publication of the period.
This design was acquired by Calouste Gulbenkian directly from Rene Lalique in 1908. It now resides in Lisbon’s Museu Calouste Gulbenkian (Lisbon) with over 100 works of René Lalique collected by Gulbenkian in his lifetime.
