A necklace tells you how a woman dressed, and how she intended to be looked at. The long sautoir of the Art Déco years asked for movement; a rivière sits still and lets the stones speak; a period chain, worn alone, is the quietest kind of confidence. Every necklace here is one-of-a-kind: vintage jewellery scouted across Europe, documented in its hallmark and provenance, examined by a gemmologist before it reaches Milan.

The collection reads by typology (sautoirs, rivières, pendants, period chains) and by era, from Victorian and Edwardian pieces to the geometry of Art Déco and the substantial gold of the Mid-Century years. If the vocabulary is new, our guide to jewellery eras is the sensible place to start.

One more thing: a chain rarely stays bare for long. Our vintage charms were made to be worn on one, gathered slowly, a few at a time.