The petal bib necklace is among the most ambitious and distinctive forms in the body of work of JAR, the Paris maison founded by Joel Arthur Rosenthal in 1977 at 7 Place Vendôme. The term refers to articulated necklaces in which the principal element is a fall of overlapping petal-shaped units across the upper chest, executed in pavé with the gradated colour and dark mounting characteristic of the maison's flower studies but at the much greater scale of a major necklace.

Form

A bib necklace, in twentieth-century jewellery terminology, is a necklace whose principal element drapes across the chest like a child's bib rather than hanging as a pendant from a chain. The form became important in mid-twentieth-century French haute joaillerie, with significant treatments by Boucheron, Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels. JAR's petal bibs adopt this overall plan but break the bib down into many small petal-shaped pavé units that are individually articulated and connected by very fine hinges, so that the necklace falls and moves with the body rather than reading as a flat plaque.

Construction

Each petal in a JAR petal bib is a discrete pavé-set element, often shaped to resemble a flower petal or a leaf depending on the necklace's particular design. The petals are graded in tonality across the surface of the necklace, with the deepest saturation typically near the centre of the bib and lighter values toward the edges, in the same gradation logic that the maison applies to its flower brooches. The articulation is achieved by very small individual hinges between petals, allowing the entire necklace to flex.

The mounting metal beneath the pavé is patinated black so that no metal reads at the surface, with the construction itself visible only on the reverse, where engraved JAR signatures and serial numbers record provenance. The necklaces are heavy by JAR standards because of the volume of metal and stones, but the articulated structure allows them to drape comfortably and to follow the line of the chest in wear.

Notable Examples

The most widely reproduced JAR petal bib is a piece in pink sapphire and ruby pavé with diamond accents, featured in the Metropolitan Museum's 2013 Jewels by JAR retrospective. A second important example in violet and blue sapphire pavé has been documented at auction. Each example is unique and the form has not been produced in any standard run.

Position in the Maison's Output

Petal bibs sit alongside the maison's other major necklace forms and represent some of the most technically and materially demanding pieces JAR has produced. They are accordingly among the maison's most highly valued pieces in both private collection and auction terms.