FRANCESCO LOFFREDO Flexible Bracelet In 18Kt Yellow Gold With Red Corals
Flexible bracelet designed by Francesco Loffredo
This is an absolutely beautiful bracelet created in the city of Caserta Italy by the jewelry house of Francesco Loffredo, back in the late 1970's. The bracelet is flexible and the main mounting was carefully crafted with parts made-up in solid yellow gold of 18 karats with polished finish and embellished with six round cabochons of coral. The bracelet itself is composed of seventy-seven coral carvings arranged in a brick pattern and connected by discreet pins, which allows for its flexibility. The bracelet is fitted with a concealed pressure slider safety lock. The corals displayed in this bracelet are of the best quality, magnificent and vivid red, matched in size, color, saturation and with even unspotted surfaces. Red coral or Corallium rubrum like this, is a branch-forming coral species found in the Mediterranean Sea and is one of the most expensive of all precious corals.
Loffredo Jewelry
Domenico Andrea Loffredo was born in Torre del Greco on September 27, 1910. He attended the school goldsmith and acquires a great expertise on the processing and embedding of corals and precious stones. In Naples collaborated with leading fashion houses such as Virgil, Ventrella, Gaito, who were accredited to the Royal Family, and produced exclusive jewelry for the Royals. In the 30s, called to military service and boarded on ships, continues the production of the precious jewelry having brought with them the tools of the trade. On January 19, 1949, already laid off, opens service shop in via Nuzzichi Toma Maglie where he made jewelry always original and specific to selected customers, and performs important work for the Curia. On October 18, 1956, he received the appointment of Knight of Malta in perpetuity. In October of 1961 the shop moved to its present location on Via Roma, and is then joined by his son Peter, who takes the helm of the company until today. The jewelry becomes a place where while experiencing an evolution inevitable, keeps alive the memory of professionalism and originality that was its creator. Fine Jewellery and watches luxury as well as modern jewelry and youth are available to customers who are treated with the utmost professionalism and dedication by Peter and his son Andrew.
Country: Caserta, Italy.
Period: Classic modernist, 1970-1980.
Corals: Mounted by pin bars, with 77 curved cabochons cuts (16 x 5 x 4 mm) carved from natural Mediterranean vivid red corals.
Corals: Mounted in bezel settings, with 6 round cabochons cuts (5mm) carved from natural Mediterranean vivid red corals.
Birthstone: Corals for the month of October.
Weight: 57.70 Grams, (37.10 Dwt).
Length: 7.5 Inches, (19 Cm).
Measurements: The width is 50 mm (1.97 Inches).
Hallmarks: Stamped with Italian control marks, the maker's mark associated to Francesco Loffredo, the mark for the assay and warranty of the 18kt yellow gold and signed as follows, "ITALY .750 *37CE".
Neapolitan Mediterranean Coral
This kind started to be fished extensively and worked in Torre del Greco, in the year 1400, at the time when Livorno held the monopoly on the raw coral. Besides its apotropaic virtues, people started to associate coral to the marvelous capacity of the material to be processed and to the great skills of the artisans, comparable to that of an alchemist or demiurge. Thanks to the Bourbons, in 1715 the town of Torre del Greco became one of the most important centers in the processing and carving of coral. The king supported the development of craftsmanship by reducing the tax on imported raw coral, though he couldn’t start a factory in the town because of the boom of the French Revolution and of the eruption of Vesuvius in 1794. Ferdinando IV of Bourbon founded the first factory for the manufacturing of coral in Torre del Greco. At the time, the production of sacred objects was replaced by the creation of ornaments and everyday objects, like combs, clips and paper knives to satisfy the requests of emerging bourgeoisie. Fishermen of Torre del Greco risked going up to the African coasts, winning over other competitor towns and thus turning Torre del Greco into the main center in Italy for coral processing. Giovanni Della Rocca, member of Parliament, obtained a decree in 1876 which established the School of Coral engraving and Industrial artistic design in Torre del Greco. The town thus became one of the world leading centers in the processing of coral and shells, devoted to the education and training of young people in the art of engraving. Indeed, the coral School in Naples is still the leader in the most modern methods of processing cameos and coral, above all in the mentioned area of Torre del Greco.
Collateral: This Francesco Loffredo coral bracelet is accompanied by a presentation jewelry box.
Condition: The overall condition of this Francesco Loffredo coral bracelet is excellent. Beside the little normal wear, there is no damage to the gold. The 83 coral carvings are secured in the settings. This bracelet was carefully inspected to guarantee the condition and authenticity.
INVENTORY REF: B110625SMNN/1.387
