Some pieces exist beyond price. This is one of them.

Van Cleef & Arpels — founded on Place Vendôme in 1906, jeweller to the world’s most illustrious — created this brooch as an expression of their art at its most unrestrained. Four large Colombian natural unheated emeralds form the centrepiece. The word “unheated” is crucial: these stones have never been treated to enhance their colour or clarity. What you see is what the earth created. Colombian unheated emeralds of this size are among the most valuable gemstones on the planet.

The emeralds are set with diamond wings that frame them like a living creature in flight, while ruby eyes animate the composition with vivid red life.