Introducing The Serpenti Forever one-of-a-kind Spinel Bag
From jewellery to leather goods, a journey inspired by the magnificent spinel
Known for its passion for vibrant and rich nuances, since its inception the Roman Jeweller and Master of Colour has travelled the world looking for the most spectacular gemstones. Inspired by the rich nuances and effervescent spirit of the vibrant spinel, Bulgari blends its jewellery and leather goods savoir faire into a mesmerising creation – the Serpenti Forever One-of-a-kind Spinel bag.
An obsessive search for the most exquisite materials, an ability to cross the boundaries of imagination and the highest artisanal skill underpin the creation of this masterpiece entirely dedicated to the magnificent spinel. With its wide array of nuances, the spinel has long been a misidentified gemstone: indeed, when featuring a rich and lively colour, it can be every bit as beautiful as a ruby. Its fame is strictly intertwined with the adventures of the Italian explorer Marco Polo, who was the first to tell the tale of the “balas rubies” at the end of the 13th century. Only three hundred years later this seductive gemstone began to appear under its real name, but it is only in recent times that it has begun to receive the appreciation it truly deserves, enriching Bulgari’s precious colour palette.
Crafted like a High Jewellery piece in every detail - from material sourcing to manufacture through design – the bag features a structured body in shiny raspberry pink crocodile skin, the most precious “gem” in the realm of Leather Goods, while its nuance has been chosen by Bulgari’s Jewellery Creation & Gems Buying Executive Director Lucia Silvestri to best match the vibrant and saturated hues of the spinel. Magnified through Bulgari’s traditional and innovative artisanal techniques, the ultra-luxe skin boasts a shiny and brilliant finishing called Millennium, which is achieved through an innovative process where a mix of waxes and caseins are activated through the final ironing at 120 degrees.
As the showstopping focal point of the bag, the iconic snakehead closure in pink gold is topped by a stunning oval spinel of 14,13 ct, catching the eyes with its vibrant and intense shade. The serpent’s piercing gaze is rendered through two drop-shaped Paraiba tourmalines of 2,6 carats, inventively matching the spinel’s vibrant hues through Bulgari’s intensively individual and cultivated eye for exciting chromatic compositions.
Emblematic of Serpenti’s ever-evolving power of transformation, the unmistakable signature closure of the collection has been here redesigned to fully enhance the colour, cut and volume of the central gemstone, while its sparkling and incredibly dynamic diamond setting – totalizing more than 25.00 carats - has been masterfully realized to exalt to the maximum the light and brilliance of each single gem.
An audacious display of Bulgari’s unparalleled mastery in the field of convertible jewellery, the gem-encrusted snakehead can be detached and worn like a pendant or a brooch, unveiling a smaller full-diamond snakehead closure as a fixed decorative component of the bag.
Finished with the tag 1/1 as evidence of its uniqueness, the bag took nearly one year of work to complete and the involvement of Bulgari’s most skilled artisans, experts and designers both in the field of jewellery and leather goods.
