French Art Nouveau Lithographs titled “Precious Stones” by Mucha

A series of French Art Nouveau decorative panel lithographs by Alphonse Mucha, titled “Les Pierres Precieuses” or “Precious Stones”. This is one of Mucha’s rarest sets, with only three or four known sets to have survived among collectors. The featured jewels are topaz, ruby, amethyst and emerald. Each jewel is represented by a woman, and the gemstone’s characteristic color is woven into the entire image, including each woman’s dress and the flowers at her feet. This set was created during the period when Mucha was associated with the goldsmith Fouquet and was, himself, designing jewelry. Pictured in Alphonse Mucha: The Complete Posters and Panels, by Jack Rennert and Alain Weill, G.K. Hall & Co., Publishers, Boston, pages 264-269.