JAR Paris, Somerset House Exhibition; Provenance: Lily Safra
[Provenance Lily Safra] Rosenthal, Joel. JAR Paris. First Edition. 2002. Book, dust jacket, and slipcase are all in very good condition—slipcase shows minor rubbing. Laid in is a holiday gift card, “Lily Safra, With my warmest wishes for a happy and peaceful New Year, December 2002.” Co-produced by Pierre Jeannet.
Weighing nearly eleven pounds, this monumental volume served as the catalogue for a landmark exhibition at Somerset House in London, showcasing more than four hundred creations by the elusive jeweler Joel Arthur Rosenthal, better known as JAR. Long regarded as a jeweler’s jeweler, Rosenthal built a reputation for extraordinary craftsmanship, uncompromising standards, and a clientele that included some of the world’s most discerning collectors. Among them was Lily Safra, to whom this copy is linked by the laid-in card card. One of JAR’s most devoted patrons, Safra assembled a remarkable collection of his work, eighteen pieces of which were included in her celebrated 2012 charity auction. Their sale realized nearly $37.9 million and remains the largest single collection of JAR jewels ever offered at auction.
“After donating a pile of jewels to charity at Christie’s Geneva today, Lily Safra had the pleasure of seeing them sell for almost twice their estimates … including 18 JAR jewels that went (of course) for well above estimates.”
--Cathleen McCarthy