This is a seriously gorgeous and original piece built around the most beautiful handprinted shell of Madonna. The colours are classic: gold, black, white and a splash of red. The focal itself is almost brought to life with he iridescence of the shell on which the portrait was painted. It sparkles in the light and gives great depth to the image. Above the focal I use a pair of rare filigree wings with black patina, made from old tooling. Hard to find! There is a pyrite stone with some patina on it , a Swarovski coin bead and a large Swarovski pendant hangs below. The chain is lightweight aluminum. The drops are black patina Swarovski crystals and two faceted black glass crosses.

The collar is constructed on a brass base (see size details in the Additional Information tab) covered in metallic foil genuine leather with paisley design and backed with stamped gold leather. The pendant is fully removable and the collar could be also worn on its own as shown in the last photo.

What can I say? Original design, rare hand painted focal (hard to get from the very talented Fedoskino Russian artists these days), best materials quality, hard work in hand stitching the leather around the collar (my fingers were actually bruised and bleeding). This piece is definitely for someone with a rich spiritual life and great admiration for art of all kinds.

One of my favourite artists, William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825 – 1905) was a French academic painter. In his realistic genre paintings he used mythological themes, making modern interpretations of classical subjects, with an emphasis on the female human body. As the quintessential salon painter of his generation, he was reviled by the Impressionist avant-garde.