Who’d have thought it? The humble dung beetle — complete with its ball of dung in the guise of a raw azurite — found its way into Lydia Courteille’s latest jewelry collection, inspired by a trip to the Sahara, via this imposing one-off ring.
Courteille embraced the unique shapes of Australian opals in a range of blues, surrounding them with 18-karat gold, topazolites and hessonites shaped to look like the wind-swept sand, in this collection of organic shapes crawling with insect forms. This imposing cuff bracelet featured a giant domed opal like a starry sky over the desert set in gold with hauynites, topazolites, hessonites and yellow sapphires.
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This three-in-one “harem” ring, held together with a gold chain, can be worn on a single finger or across two or three. Australian opals were mounted in 18-karat gold set with topazolites and hessonites in one of the less-imposing pieces in the collection of 13 unique designs.
These versatile and original earrings featured several strands of yellow sapphire beads that form a detachable necklace. Set with two opals as well as topazolites, hessonites and yellow sapphires, one featured an ear cuff for an added touch of eccentricity.
On one of the standout pieces in the collection, two-horned vipers wrap their bodies around the neck as if hidden under a desert rock. With their opal heads and yellow sapphire eyes, they look almost like they are poised to bite.