How a lucky charm came to be

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW Van Cleef & Arpels’ instantly recognisable four-leaf clover motif came about? Or why this symbol of luck established itself as a key icon for the French luxury jeweller?

To understand its history, it’s best to start 130 years ago.

That was when Alfred Van Cleef married Estelle Arpels in Paris. Both hailed from jewellery merchant families, with Van Cleef in 1906 partnering his brother-in-law, Charles Arpels, to open the first Van Cleef & Arpels boutique at 22 Place Vendome – where it still stands today.

Luck is a theme that the maison has woven into its creations. Jacques Arpels – Estelle’s nephew – used to say that “to be lucky, you have to believe in luck”. He also gathered four-leaf clovers in the garden of his house in Germigny-l’Eveque, presenting them to staff together with the American poem Don’t Quit as an encouragement to never give up.

Records show that four-leaf clovers – a highly unusual and thus “lucky” mutation of the common three-leaf clover – made their maison debut in the 1920s. Thereafter, the motif was joined by other symbols of fortuity, such as wooden talismans, lucky charms and benevolent fairies.

Of icons and exotic locales

Fast-forward to 1968, and out of Van Cleef & Arpels’ atelier comes a long necklace featuring 20 four-leaf clover motifs in creased gold, delicately edged with golden beads. It was named Alhambra, after the Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain, whose distinctive quatrefoil-shaped designs resemble that of a four-leaf clover.

The name may also have something to do with the fact that members of the founding family made numerous voyages during the 1960s and 1970s; their travels to exotic locales went on to influence many of the maison’s collections and their nomenclature.

Alhambra, though, was an immediate success.

Famous personalities in the 1970s who were photographed wearing its necklaces include Princess Grace of Monaco, French singer Francoise Hardy and German-French actress Romy Schneider.

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Alhambra also became widely recognised as an enduring Van Cleef & Arpels icon that’s evocative of travel and enchanting scenery. It is this powerful combination of luck in precious, physical form and the ability to conjure images of journeys across foreign lands that continues to hold sway today.

The lucky voyage continues

Every Alhambra piece pulls together the varied skills of lapidaries, jewellers, stone-setters and polishers. They bring nature’s most beautiful materials, including diamonds, mother-of-pearl and ornamental stones, to life in the four-leaf clover’s gold beaded setting.

Also applied is the traditional engraving technique of guilloche that creates delicate striations on the gold clover-leaf shapes. This pattern adds depth and dynamism to the motif, as light catches the etchings during movement.

Whether worn solo on a ring or timepiece, across various sizes on drop earrings or in glorious multiples as seen on bracelets and necklaces, Van Cleef & Arpels’ four-leaf clover is instantly distinguishable.

Over the decades, not only has Alhambra’s timeless design endured, it has welcomed new models – each an opportunity to showcase the breadth and depth of the maison’s savoir-faire.

Could luck have anything to do with the fact that fans still resonate with this pretty, four-leaf clover motif today?

We’ll take a chance and say “yes”.