A throwback to 2007, when I was delighted to participate in the Italian foremost Jewellery showcase called “Desideri Preziosi” (Precious Desires).

Desideri Preziosi is a famous jewellery exhibition organized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Rome, in collaboration with the CNA Rome. 

The showcase is annually held at the ancient Tempio di Adriano, in the heart of imperial Rome. It is considered the most important exhibition in Italy, with the dual goal of promoting maximum visibility for local jewelry-makers and creating a platform where demand meets supply.

The theme of the 2007 Desideri Preziosi edition was the Imperial Roman monument Ara Pacis Augustae. A monument-statement dedicated to PAX (Peace).

 

 

The altar reflects the Emperor's vision of prosperity and abundance under a prolonged period of peace.

“PAX SUPRA LEGES”  Was the imposing statement that Emperor Augustus pronounced before the Roman Senate on the 4th of July 13 BC, Signifying that discord with neighboring Empires would not break into new wars.

Analyzing the Ara Pacis, I remember being fully captivated and enthralled by the richness of symbolic and adorning elements that appear on its bas-reliefs. One, in particular, was emerging from the carved stone over and over. The snake, a historical representation of fertility, rebirth, transformation, and immortality.

 

I chose, or I have been chosen hard to say in creative processes, the Snake as a narrative connection to the Ara Pacis.  It was an obsessive piece that took several weeks to come to life, embedding antique techniques such as  Vitreous enameling and obviously the jigsaw evoking statement into the Inner gallery of the ring: PAX SUPRA LEGES”.