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The simple elegance of the starfish brooch conceals complex construction that combines form and function. At four inches long it is roughly the size of an outstretched palm and features 71 collet-set rubies and 665 pavé-set amethysts. Drawn from the Asterias vulgaris, a common sea star native to the North Atlantic, the brooch has dozens of sophisticated joints that allow movement in three directions (up and down, side to side, and around). The legs flex and drape with the same wave-like motion as the marine creature it represents. Initially designed in 1935, the starfish took years to perfect. In 1938, while traveling in Paris, American actress Claudette Colbert purchased the brooch. Even if she had seen the brooch illustrated in Vogue (1937) or photographed in Harper’s Bazaar (1938), it would have done little to prepare her for its sensual nature. Colbert had a lifelong love of the ocean, so it’s easy to imagine her delight when she was presented with the brooch at Boivin’s atelier on Avenue de l’Opera. After carefully lifting the starfish from the fitted box, at the moment when its heft sank into her palm and its articulated legs wrapped around her fingers, she must have been truly dazzled.
Starfish brooch
Designed by: Juliette Moutard (French)
For: René Boivin (French, founded in 1890)
Fabricated by: Charles Profilet (French)
Worn by: Claudette Colbert (American (born in France), 1903 – 1996)
For: René Boivin (French, founded in 1890)
Fabricated by: Charles Profilet (French)
Worn by: Claudette Colbert (American (born in France), 1903 – 1996)
French
1937
Medium/Technique
Gold (18k), ruby, amethyst
Dimensions
Length x width: 10.8 × 10.2 cm (4 1/4 × 4 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase with funds donated by the Rita J. and Stanley H. Kaplan Family Foundation, Monica S. Sadler, Otis Norcross Fund, Helen and Alice Colburn Fund, the Curators Circle: Fashion Council, Nancy Adams and Scott Schoen, Seth K. Sweetser Fund, Theresa Baybutt, Emi M. and William G. Winterer, and Deborah Glasser
Accession Number2019.654.1
NOT ON VIEW
ClassificationsJewelry / Adornment – Brooches
The simple elegance of the starfish brooch conceals complex construction that combines form and function. At four inches long it is roughly the size of an outstretched palm and features 71 collet-set rubies and 665 pavé-set amethysts. Drawn from the Asterias vulgaris, a common sea star native to the North Atlantic, the brooch has dozens of sophisticated joints that allow movement in three directions (up and down, side to side, and around). The legs flex and drape with the same wave-like motion as the marine creature it represents. Initially designed in 1935, the starfish took years to perfect. In 1938, while traveling in Paris, American actress Claudette Colbert purchased the brooch. Even if she had seen the brooch illustrated in Vogue (1937) or photographed in Harper’s Bazaar (1938), it would have done little to prepare her for its sensual nature. Colbert had a lifelong love of the ocean, so it’s easy to imagine her delight when she was presented with the brooch at Boivin’s atelier on Avenue de l’Opera. After carefully lifting the starfish from the fitted box, at the moment when its heft sank into her palm and its articulated legs wrapped around her fingers, she must have been truly dazzled.
DescriptionAn 18-karat gold brooch in the shape of a starfish with 71 collet-set cabochon rubies amid a ground of pavé-set amethysts. The arms of the starfish brooch are fully articulated; the brooch expands and retracts in a way that mimics the movement of a real starfish. Two of the fish's five rays are flipped at the ends, exposing the yellow gold on its underside. Designed in 1935, this brooch was purchased by the American actress Claudette Colbert (1903-1996) in 1938.
Signed
"R. Boivin, Paris" with maker's mark for Charles Profilet
Marks
French assay marks
ProvenanceAbout 1937, purchased by Claudette Colbert (b. 1903 – d. 1996), Los Angeles. September 24, 2008, anonymous sale, Christie’s, Paris, lot 238. Sold by Stephen Russell Jewelry, New York, to Nancy Marks, New York; by about 2018, sold by Nancy Marks to Siegelson, New York; 2019, sold by Siegelson to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 19, 2019)