MAKER’S MARK
Initials or trademark stamped or engraved on a piece.
MARQUISE
Elegant marquise shape diamonds are an attractive and remarkable choice for a special piece of jewellery. The marquise shape is a soft oval with a stretched point at each end, although there can be a wide variety of proportions from almost ‘spiky’ thin marquises to ‘fat’ rounder shapes. Another name for the marquise cut is ‘navette’ which is French for ‘little boat’ and echoes the smooth outline of a ship’s hull.
The name for the marquise cut allegedly has its roots in mid 18th century France when luxury loving King Louis XV supposedly commissioned his court jeweller to fashion a diamond to match the perfect shaped mouth of his most popular mistress, Jean Antoinette Poisson, the Marquise de Pompadour- perhaps best known as Madame de Pompadour.
The marquise cut of diamond is classed as a fancy cut diamond and is seen much more rarely than most other diamond cuts due to the high degree of weight loss when cutting the crystal into this shape, often losing more than 50% of the diamond crystal. Marquises are most often cut from an irregularly shaped diamond crystal to make the most of their dimensions and symmetry- producing a distinctive look with a particular sparkle.Marquise shape diamonds can be seen either as a single focal point on an engagement ring, letting the beauty of the diamond speak for itself with the elegant shape elongating the finger or used in combination with different diamond cuts in an intricate cluster creating a highly distinctive and usual look.
MELLERIO
Established in 1613, the firm of Mellerio has been passed down through fourteen generations from father to son, making it one of the oldest family owned companies in Europe. The Mellerio family originated in Lombardy, but have lived in France since the time of King François I. In 1804 the company was deemed ‘Les plus en vogue’ by the Parisian publication Almanac des Modes. Thus started perhaps Mellerios most illustrious period—the nineteenth century—during which French royalty, nobility, and emperors, depending on the political situation of the moment, were all customers. The firm also participated in the great exhibitions of the nineteenth century, including the 1855, 1867, 1878, and 1900 Paris exhibitions and the 1862 London exhibition and the 1873 Vienna exhibition, winning various distinctions. The firm is currently located at 9, rue de la Paix, Paris.
MOTHER OF PEARL
The iridescent inner layer of certain molluscs such as oysters or abalones which is used as a decorative inlay.
It is often used in watch faces and men’s cufflink dress sets.
MUZO
A town in central Colombia known for its mines, which produce what are widely considered to be the world’s finest emeralds. Though emeralds had been extracted from the mountains of Muzo since pre-Colombian times, the Spanish pioneered large-scale mining here starting in 1538, exporting the gems throughout the world. Muzo emeralds are known for their desirable highly saturated bluish-green appearance, large size, and superior clarity. Furthermore, Muzo emeralds, along with stones from some other nearby Colombian mines, posses a unique chemical make-up among world emeralds sources which causes them to fluoresce in normal light, enhancing their already ideal hue.