Christian Dior Vintage Massive Art Deco Pegasus Brooch
About the Item
- Creator:
- Place of Origin:France
- Period:20th Century
- Date of Manufacture:1990s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Faint cracks on gilt surface, scratches throughout (see examples on photos 10 to 12).
- Seller Location:Nice, FR
- Reference Number:
Christian Dior
When Christian Dior launched his couture house, in 1946, he wanted nothing less than to make “an elegant woman more beautiful and a beautiful woman more elegant.” He succeeded, and in doing so the visionary designer altered the landscape of 20th century fashion. Vintage Dior bags, shoes, evening dresses, shirts and other garments and accessories are known today for their feminine and sophisticated sensibility.
Dior was born in Granville, on the Normandy coast, in 1905. His prosperous haute bourgeois parents wanted him to become a diplomat despite his interest in art and architecture. However, they agreed to bankroll an art gallery, which Dior opened in 1928 in Paris with a friend.
This was the start of Dior’s rise in the city’s creative milieu, where he befriended Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau. After seven years as an art dealer, Dior retrained as a fashion illustrator, eventually landing a job as a fashion designer for Robert Piguet, and in 1941, following a year of military service, he joined the house of Lucien Lelong. Just five years later, with the backing of industrialist Marcel Boussac, the ascendant Dior established his own fashion house, at 30 avenue Montaigne in Paris.
Just two years after the end of World War II, the fashion crowd and the moribund haute couture industry were yearning, comme tout Paris, for security and prosperity, desperate to discard the drab, sexless, utilitarian garb imposed by wartime deprivation. They needed to dream anew.
And Dior delivered: He designed a collection for a bright, optimistic future. “It’s quite a revolution, dear Christian!” exclaimed Carmel Snow, the prescient American editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar, famously proclaiming, “Your dresses have such a new look.” The press ran with the description, christening Dior’s debut Spring/Summer haute couture collection the New Look. “God help those who bought before they saw Dior,” said Snow. “This changes everything.”
Dior’s collection definitively declared that opulence, luxury and femininity were in. His skirts could have 40-meter-circumference hems, and outfits could weigh up to 60 pounds. They were cut and shaped like architecture, on strong foundations that molded women and “freed them from nature,” Dior said. Rather than rationing, his ladies wanted reams of fabric and 19-inch waists enforced by wire corsets, and the fashion world concurred. The debut got a standing ovation.
In the subsequent decade, Paris ruled as the undisputed fashion capital of the world, and Christian Dior reigned as its king. With the luxuriously full skirts of his New Look, suits and his drop-dead gorgeous couture dresses and ball gowns worthy of any princess, Dior gave women the gift of glamour they’d lost in the miserable years of war.
On 1stDibs, find an exquisite range of vintage Christian Dior clothing, jewelry, handbags and other items.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: French Riviera, France
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 2 days of delivery.
- CHRISTIAN LACROIX Vintage Massive Gold Tone and Faux Gemstones BroochBy Christian LacroixLocated in Nice, FRCHRISTIAN LACROIX vintage massive gold tone brooch featuring a textured center adorned by faux gemstones glass cabochons. Marked CHRISTIAN LACROIX CL...Category
20th Century French Brooches
MaterialsGilt Metal
- CHRISTIAN LACROIX Vintage Massive Gold Tone Splash Cross Brooch PendantBy Christian LacroixLocated in Nice, FRCHRISTIAN LACROIX vintage massive gold tone "splash" cross brooch. Could be used as a brooch or pendant. Marked CHRISTIAN LACROIX CL Made in France. Indicative measurements : heig...Category
20th Century French Brooches
MaterialsGilt Metal
- KARL LAGERFELD Vintage Gold Tone Cutlery Set BroochBy Karl LagerfeldLocated in Nice, FRKARL LAGERFELD vintage gold tone cutlery set brooch. Embossed KL. Indicative measurements : max. height approx. 8.4 cm (3.31 inches) / max. width approx. 5.1 cm (2.00 inches). Material : Gold tone metal hardware. NOTES - This is a preloved vintage...Category
20th Century French Brooches
MaterialsGilt Metal
- CHRISTIAN LACROIX Vintage Massive Gold Tone and Faux Gemstones BroochBy Christian LacroixLocated in Nice, FRCHRISTIAN LACROIX vintage massive gold tone brooch featuring a textured center adorned with faux gemstones glass cabochons. Marked CHRISTIAN LACROIX ...Category
20th Century French Brooches
MaterialsGilt Metal
- Liliane Muller Fabulous Opulent Vintage Huge BroochBy Liliane MullerLocated in Nice, FRLILIANE MULLER fabulous vintage opulent huge brooch featuring a retro woman print profile embellished with faux pearls, glass beads, resin cabochons, mirro...Category
20th Century French Brooches
- Christian Lacroix Vintage Massive Gold Toned Mirrored Dangling BroochBy Christian LacroixLocated in Nice, FRCHRISTIAN LACROIX vintage massive gold toned resin brooch featuring a stylized star top and a dangling drop embellished with multicolored mirrors, crystals and purple acrylic cabocho...Category
20th Century French Brooches
- Van Cleef & Arpels Yellow Diamond Flower BroochBy Van Cleef & ArpelsLocated in New York, NYA resplendent piece by Van Cleef & Arpels, comprised of 218 fancy vivid yellow diamonds weighing approximately 25 carats VVS-VS, finely set in 18k yellow gold and designed as a quin...Category
Vintage 1980s American Brooches
MaterialsDiamond, Yellow Diamond, 18k Gold
- Massive and Fabulous Ruby and Canary Diamond Flower Brooch with Removable StemLocated in West Palm Beach, FLThis massive and fabulously over the top ruby and canary diamond flower brooch with removable stem contains approximately 100 carats of glistening red rubies in the flower part. Th...Category
1990s Unknown Brooches
MaterialsCitrine, Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
- 18K Gold Pearl Diamond Emerald Flamingo BroochLocated in New York, NYA vintage 18K yellow gold figural pin brooch representing a flamingo. The piece is garnished with round and baroque natural pearls, emerald cabochons, and cut diamonds. The eye of th...Category
20th Century Unknown Brooches
MaterialsDiamond, Emerald, Pearl, 18k Gold
- Norseland CORO Large Sterling Silver Vintage BroochBy CoroLocated in New York, NYNorseland by Coro Large Sterling Silver Vintage Brooch Bird Approximately weight is 26 Grams. The brooch is in great condition just needs a light polishi...Category
20th Century Brooches
MaterialsSterling Silver
- Carved Coral with Diamond Goddess of Mercy Brooch Set in 18K White Gold SettingsLocated in Bangkok, THA Coral carving of a buddha: 80.75 carats with Diamond 2.46 carats, Diamond 0.31 carat Brooch Set in 18 Karat White Gold Settings Width:2.4 cm Length: 6.0 cm Weight: 26.71 grams ...Category
2010s Thai Brooches
MaterialsCoral, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
- Pair of Ruby and Diamond Butterfly Brooches, by Suzanne BelperronBy Suzanne BelperronLocated in London, GBA pair of ruby and diamond butterfly brooches, by Suzanne Belperron. Each designed as a butterfly with pavé-set diamond wings, enhanced by circular-cut ruby detail, to the baguette-cut diamond body, with French assay marks for platinum and gold Designed by Suzanne Belperron, with maker's mark for Atelier Groene et Darde (partially illegible) Accompanied by certificate no. B33901122012 dated 12 January 2012 from Belperron LLC stating that the pair of brooches...Category
Vintage 1950s French Retro Brooches
MaterialsDiamond, Ruby, Platinum
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Too Soon for the Return of ’90s Fashion? As If
There's a renewed appreciation for the era's aesthetic, perhaps most notably among millennials seeking authentic, easy style.
14 Iconic Luxury Handbags and the Stories behind Them
When the name of a bag is as well-known as its brand, you know it's a classic.