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Trifari | Golden Jeweled Butterfly Brooch
Trifari | Golden Jeweled Butterfly Brooch
. . . . Fanciful!
Trifari
True Trifari elegance! The Crown Brooch is a highly sought after piece for collectors—especially in good condition and this piece is just about as good as it gets. All stones appear to be original and they are all bright and beautiful. I see very little signs of age even in the clear chaton rhinestones. The oval translucent cabochons in pools of deep red are affixed prominently as proud shoulders to this regal brooch. From the finial to the beautifully bezel set sapphire emerald cut rhinestones Trifari uses "the big three" precious gem jewel tones in a way that justly makes this brooch a regal treasure. I will be honest in that this one is difficult to let go of especially because of its condition. The patent for this design was filed by Alfred Phillipe on February 12, 1944 and issued on March 28, 1944. You will find the Trifari Crown Brooch in many books on vintage jewelry. To name a few — "American Costume Jewelry Volume 2", by Brunialti, "Signed Beauties of Costume Jewelry," by Marcia "Sparkles" Brown and "Warman's Costume Jewelry Figurals," by Kathy Flood. ID-408
Measurements:
The Brooch — Approximately 2 inches wide by 1 ⅞ inches tall.Trifari Jewelry History —
The Trifari jewelry brand was started by 20-year-old Italian immigrant, Gustavo Trifari, who arrived at Ellis Island from Napoli in 1904. In 1910 he founded "Trifari and Trifari" with his uncle. Gustavo's uncle left the company a few years later, and Gustavo continued the company under the name of "Trifari." It's no wonder that Italian collectors love to buy Trifari Vintage Jewelry, as Gustavo is one of their own.
Leo Krussman joined Trifari in 1917, and Carl Fishel joined as head of sales in 1925. The company name was then changed to "Trifari, Krussman and Fishel" and the logo "KTF" (with an enlarged "T" at the center). Trifari Vintage Jewelry pieces from this era are extremely rare.
In 1930 Trifari hired Alfred Philippe as head designer, and that is when the company began to really take off. Philippe's background designing very high end fine jewelry for firms like Cartier and Van Cleef and Arples brought a wonderful sense of luxury and style to the company. The Trifari Vintage Jewelry Designs he created have the style and glamour of fine jewelry and were very popular. Philippe continued to work at Trifari until his retirement in 1968.
In the 1940's the company name was changed back to "Trifari" and the famous Trifari Crown logo was stamped on the pieces.
Philippe continued to work at Trifari until his retirement in 1968. Trifari continued to be run by its founder and sons until 1975, when the company was sold to Hallmark Jewelry Company. In 1988 the company was sold to Crystal Brands, and in 1994 sold to Chase Capital Partners and Lattice Holding Company, a division of the Monet Group. During that time, high end, collectible Trifari jewelry was produced for sale on QVC. Many of these were Limited Editions, and collectors highly prize them as the last of the signed Trifari Jewelry.
In 2000 the Monet Group was purchased by Liz Claiborne and production was moved overseas, which brought an end to the high quality signed Trifari jewelry. Liz Claiborne Inc. continues to produce Trifari jewelry overseas, but these are lesser quality unsigned pieces that are on Trifari cards.
Having trouble with the small sizes of
yesteryear? Well, most of us do!
The ladies were smaller than the women of today.
NO Problem, be sure to check out our necklace extenders.
The ladies were smaller than the women of today.
NO Problem, be sure to check out our necklace extenders.