Rating and value of jewelry, necklaces and rings by Pierre Sterlé

If you own a piece of Pierre Sterlé jewelry, and would like to know its value, our state-approved experts and auctioneers will offer you their appraisal services.

Our specialists will carry out a free appraisal of your jewel, and will provide you with an accurate estimate of its value on the current market.

Then, if you wish to sell your jewel, we will direct you to the best possible arrangement to obtain the optimum price. The price of a piece of jewelry can vary depending on the year, the artist behind its creation, and the material from which it was fashioned. 

Rating and value of a Pierre Sterlé  

Jewels are iconic Pierre Sterlé pieces, and must-haves of the women's wardrobe ; their success is no longer to be boasted. The price at which they sell on the art and auction markets ranges from €100 to €48,000, a considerable delta but one that speaks volumes about the value that can be attributed to your jewelry.

In 2011, a yellow gold set comprising a corsage clip and a pair of ear pendants sold for €48,000, while it was estimated at €40,000 to €50,000.

Order of value ranging from a classic piece of jewelry to the rarest and most sought-after

Pierre Sterlé's style and technique   

Pierre Sterlé (1913 - 1978) was a major French jeweler of the 20th century, and a central figure in post-war Parisian jewelry. His aesthetic is situated between the classical heritage of the Place Vendôme and organic, naturalistic modernity.

His jewelry is conceived as an art of movement and volume, not as mere adornment. He draws his main inspiration from nature, with foliage, feathers, flowers, insects and stylized plant forms in his creations. Nature, however, is interpreted and never described, with a tendency towards organic abstraction.

His compositions are dynamic and asymmetrical, with a rejection of frontal rigidity. Jewelry is thought of in three dimensions, often seen in rotation on the body. The jewelry is designed to embrace movement with flexibility, suppleness and invisible articulation.

Pierre Sterlé seeks a natural, almost textile wear, using mainly 18-carat gold, often white or yellow. He makes frequent and virtuoso use of precious stones (diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds). The stones serve the structure, not the other way around.

The articulation of the jewels is complex, with invisible systems and integrated moving elements. The settings are flexible, cascading, with stones used to accentuate movement. Metal is worked like a living material, with undulating, ribbed and pleated volumes. It deliberately erases technical structure in favor of visual fluidity. The setting is rarely ostentatious, with stones suspended, floating and integrated into the overall design.

The jewelry is transformable or modular in some cases. Brooches can become necklaces or multiple ornaments. Jewelry is thought of as an object in transformation.

His aesthetic intention is to make technical constraints disappear behind the obviousness of gesture, and create jewelry where virtuosity is never demonstrative.

The life of Pierre Sterlé

Pierre Sterlé was born in Paris in 1913. He came from a background with no direct jewellery tradition, but was soon attracted to fine craftsmanship and technical precision. He initially trained in Parisian jewelry workshops, rigorously learning the classical skills of jewelry design, volume setting, goldsmithing and setting.

His training was essentially practical, based on the workshop rather than the institution. He began his career before the Second World War, working as a designer and creator for several jewelry houses. He quickly made a name for himself with his extraordinary formal inventiveness.

He collaborated with major Place Vendôme houses, including Boucheron, Chaumet, Mauboussin and Cartier. He designed exceptional pieces, often without visible signatures, according to the custom of the time.

He founded his own company, Pierre Sterlé, in the 1950s, and set up his workshop in Paris. He immediately positioned himself as a designer of haute joaillerie, without industrial production.

The 1950s and 1960s were his period of maximum maturity and recognition. He attracted a prestigious clientele and built a reputation on his technical virtuosity, formal audacity and mastery of movement.

Pierre Sterlé defines himself as a craftsman-creator, and designs his models himself. He has tight control over his workmanship in the workshop, and places great importance on the dialogue between design, metal and stone.

Although he keeps a low profile in the media, he is recognized by his peers as a benchmark jeweler. He continued his demanding production until the 1970s, and died in 1978 in Paris. He was rediscovered in the 2000s by jewelry historians, auction houses and specialized collectors.

Market segmentation and Pierre Sterlé's rating

The secondary market is international, positioned on post-war French haute joaillerie and the " signed jewels " category. The offer is regular at public sales, with a core of recurring lots.

Collars (pieces of fine jewelry, often diamonds, platinum and gold) constitute the most premium segment, strongly driven by the complexity of construction and rarity of documented pieces.
Bracelets belong to a higher segment, where value depends on flexibility, design and diamonds. Brooches (birds, naturalistic motifs, clips) are a structuring segment of the Sterlé identity, with a strong price dispersion depending on stones, cut and period.

Earrings are also part of the top segment, when it comes to " feather /leaf " diamond models, often dating from the 1950s.

Rings form an intermediate segment, more valued as a product with points on particular stones. Diamonds and platinum or gold constitute a top segment associated with Place Vendôme and haute joaillerie.

18k gold alone or colored stones are part of an intermediate to high segment, depending on the inventiveness of the setting and the bibliography.

Creations from the 1950s - 1960s have a frequent premium, as they are the height of research into suppleness, feathers and birds). For later periods, the market is active but more dependent on materials and pattern strength.

Recognizing a Pierre Sterlé creation   

Pierre Sterlé jewelry is signed, and hallmarked according to the metal. However, there are many copies, which is why the expertise of your jewel remains very important.

Know the certain value of your jewelry 

If you happen to own a Pierre Sterlé piece of jewelry or think you might, don't hesitate to request a free appraisal using our form on our website.

A member of our team of experts and licensed auctioneers will contact you promptly to provide you with an estimate of the market value of your jewel, as well as any relevant information about it.

If you wish to sell your property, you will also be accompanied by our specialists in order to benefit from alternatives for selling it at the best possible price, taking into account the inclinations of the market.