Suzanne Belperron Rings: Yin and Yang, Toit, Tourbillon
Tourbillon ring in chalcedony set with a Burmese ruby cabochon. Private collection.
After her stones and her sources of inspiration, this article turns to a single jewel. The ring runs through the entire career of Suzanne Belperron, from her own engagement ring designed in 1923 to models still being made in 1974. Bold volumes, sculpted hardstones, names chosen for their poetry: here are the designs that best sum up the style of a Suzanne Belperron ring.
Key takeaways
• Her Yin and Yang engagement ring, dated 1923, in hammered yellow gold, remains an iconic model in the profession.
• The Toit ring, an iconic model in her repertoire, ranges from platinum paved with diamonds to yellow gold set with coloured stones.
• The body of many of her rings is carved from rock crystal, agate, chalcedony or smoky quartz.
• Two Toi et Moi rings in platinum and pearls were found in her personal jewel cases.
The Yin and Yang ring, her own engagement ring
The first Yin and Yang ring, dated 1923, is her own engagement ring, and it no doubt held a particular meaning for her. Designed in the autumn, it combines hammered yellow gold with an old-cut diamond given by Jean Belperron, an engineer she married in Besançon on 11 July 1924. This design remains an iconic model in the profession.
Yin and Yang ring in hammered yellow gold set with an old-cut diamond. Suzanne Belperron’s own engagement ring, 1923. Suzanne Belperron’s jewel case, private collection.
The principle of yin and yang, from the Far East, then inspired rings that met with great success: in gold or platinum, set with diamonds, sapphires and rubies, or adorned with a grey pearl and a white pearl. The design has spanned the decades: in March 1972, Marie Laforêt wore on the cover of Vogue a ring in virgin gold set with brilliants, identical to the engagement ring (photo by Helmut Newton).
The Toit ring, an iconic model in her repertoire
A drawing kept in her archives shows the Toit (Roof) ring in rock crystal, platinum and diamonds. Suzanne Belperron went on to create many versions of it. In platinum, it is paved with diamonds on two, three or four rows, and a gouache of the design offers two different pavings.
Toit rings in platinum paved with diamonds on two, three and four rows. Suzanne Belperron’s jewel case, private collection and Christie’s.
In yellow gold, it is composed of sapphires, rubies, emeralds, tourmalines, aquamarines, amethysts and kunzites in a grain-set paving. Another version has two button pearls: in British Vogue in 1936, a Toit ring with two pearls facing each other was paired with a white agate bracelet set with a pearl.
Toit ring in yellow gold with sapphires, rubies, emeralds, tourmalines, aquamarines, amethysts and kunzites in a grain-set paving. Private collection.
White agate bracelet set with a pearl, paired with a Toit ring with two pearls facing each other. British Vogue, 1936. Eric Erikson/Vogue © The Condé Nast Publications Ltd.
The body of the ring carved from hardstone
The technical innovations of Adrien Louart made it possible to fit stone settings or pearl pegs into hardstones: rock crystal, smoky quartz, agate, chalcedony. This gave rise to endless variations, in which Suzanne Belperron played with the tones of the stones. The sale of the jewels from the Louart workshop at Drouot on 8 December 1992 shows their range: a blue agate band with a sapphire cabochon, another in aquamarine set with a rectangular step-cut tourmaline, a smoky quartz model with a pearl, a rose quartz signet ring set with an oval citrine. It also included a Bibendum ring in brown agate set with a pearl.
Bibendum ring in brown agate set with a half-pearl. Private collection.
She particularly liked to pair diamonds with rock crystal, polished or frosted. Her rings with a crystal body set with a diamond have “the effect of an ice cube in water”. Her personal ring is set with an “old mine” navette-cut diamond of about 12 carats, mounted in platinum. The drawings of this ring are kept in her archives.
Suzanne Belperron’s personal ring, with a rock crystal body set with an “old mine” navette-cut diamond of about 12 carats in a platinum setting. Suzanne Belperron’s jewel case, private collection.
Drawings of Suzanne Belperron’s own ring in rock crystal and diamonds. Olivier Baroin Archives.
She also dared to use more unexpected materials, such as ebony set with a sapphire cabochon. Diana Vreeland, one of her prestigious friends, adored her style: the sale of her “couture jewels” by Sotheby’s in New York on 21 October 1987 included a ring unidentified at the time, with a blue chalcedony body topped with an oval sapphire cabochon. It is by Suzanne Belperron.
Ebony ring set with a sapphire cabochon in a platinum setting, after a drawing made around 1930. Aguttes.
Tourbillon, Boule, Fiacre: names chosen for their poetry
Her appointment books show that she named her creations for the poetic resonance of the words rather than for any formal or historical reference: the Camomille, Turban, Louis XIV and Corde rings. The Indian turban inspired rings in gold or hardstones, set with pearls or stones: this shape, drawn in her notebooks from adolescence, gives the material the illusion of movement.
The Tourbillon ring comes in chalcedony set with a Burmese ruby cabochon, or in yellow gold and platinum, with a central sapphire and lines of diamonds. The Boule ring in yellow gold combines turquoise cabochons in a honeycomb setting with a line of emerald-cut sapphires. The Dôme ring in yellow gold is set with peridots, tourmalines and olivines. As for the Fiacre ring of 1942, in yellow gold, citrine and diamonds, it also exists as a brooch.
Boule ring in yellow gold, set with turquoise cabochons in a honeycomb setting, interspersed with a line of emerald-cut sapphires. Private collection.
Fiacre ring in yellow gold, set with a citrine and diamonds, 1942. Private collection.
A ring designed for one hand and one person
Before each commission, Suzanne Belperron asked about her clients’ way of life and observed the shape of the face, the tone of the skin and the form of the hands. One regular client recalls a ring ordered by the wife of an African head of state, made in smoky quartz and yellow diamonds, ideal tones to suit her complexion.
Ring in yellow gold and smoky quartz with a band set with yellow diamonds. Suzanne Belperron’s jewel case, private collection.
Her appointment books record these orders, ring sizes included. On 18 October 1946, Princess Aga Khan ordered a gold ring for her “beautiful emerald”, in size 53. In November 1938, Mrs Gary Cooper ordered a ring in fine gold, delivered to the Hôtel George-V. On 28 July 1939, the Duke of Kent bought a ring set with a 10-carat sapphire.
Toi et Moi: the rings in her personal jewel case
When her safes were opened, several rings were found in her jewel cases, and pearls feature prominently: two Toi et Moi rings in platinum, one of which brings together a white pearl and a black pearl, a ring set with a Mabé pearl on white gold, and a personal platinum ring with a 26.42-carat natural button pearl, its palmettes set with baguette diamonds.
Toi et Moi ring in platinum with two pearls: one white and one black. Suzanne Belperron’s jewel case, private collection.
Toi et Moi ring in platinum with two pearls. Suzanne Belperron’s jewel case, private collection.
Platinum ring with a large natural button pearl, 105.68 grains (26.42 carats), palmettes set with baguette diamonds. Suzanne Belperron’s jewel case, private collection.
Authenticating a Suzanne Belperron ring: designs revisited over fifty years
Her designs were revisited during her lifetime and reworked in different stones. The Cerf-volant (Kite) ring is a good example: designed in the 1930s, it was still being made for a client in 1974. This longevity calls for caution, as the same ring may exist in several personalised versions, decades apart. Like her other creations, these rings are not signed: only stylistic expertise and the designer’s archives, which record 6,729 clients and about 45,000 appointments, allow Olivier Baroin to authenticate and date them.
Cerf-volant (Kite) ring in platinum set with two diamonds, made in 1974 after a drawing from the 1930s. Private collection.
Frequently asked questions
What was Suzanne Belperron’s engagement ring?
A Yin and Yang ring dated 1923, in hammered yellow gold. Jean Belperron gave her the old-cut diamond.
What is a Suzanne Belperron Toi et Moi ring?
A ring that brings together two stones. Her personal jewel cases held two such rings in platinum, set with pearls, one of which combines a white pearl and a black pearl.
What are her main ring designs?
They include the Yin and Yang, Toit, Tourbillon, Boule, Dôme, Casque (Helmet), Bibendum, Nuage (Cloud), Fiacre and Cerf-volant rings, as well as her many rings in rock crystal, agate and chalcedony.
How can a Suzanne Belperron ring be authenticated?
As her rings are not signed, authentication relies on stylistic expertise and on her archives (drawings, gouaches, plaster casts, appointment books), kept by Olivier Baroin.