Precious metals, gemstones and the signatures of fine jewellery, seen through the collections that Japan has carefully kept.
A signature written in gold
Sotirios Voulgaris was a silversmith, and the house that carries his name began as a shop. He launched his company in Rome in 1884, with a jewellery store at Via Sistina 85, and in 1905 he unveiled the Via Condotti shop that became the flagship. In 1934 the name appeared there in the Latin spelling BVLGARI, in gilded brass letters over the central doorway. Every Bulgari piece on this shelf descends from that doorway.
The snake came later. Bulgari introduced its Serpenti bracelet-watches as the 1940s came to a close, using a technique called Tubogas, in which a flexible band of metal coils around the wrist or neck. The method was demanding enough that early pieces were made by hand and no two were identical. The Serpenti Viper ring here, set with diamond pavé in K18 pink gold, is a late chapter of that coil, and it rewards the same close looking: the scales should meet cleanly and the head should sit square.
From mascot to jewel
Louis Vuitton's Vivienne began as a character rather than a jewel. She first appeared in 2018 on key chains, as a bag charm and across handbags, a flower-headed, semi-abstract mascot with a star over one eye. In October 2021 the house carried her into fine jewellery with the Travellers Collection, eleven limited-edition figures, each detachable from its chain so that it can be worn as a brooch or displayed as a miniature object. The Panda in that collection carries 166 diamonds. The Vivienne pendant and brooch in 18K yellow gold and enamel gathered here belongs to the same idea: a jewel that can change its job on the day.
Takashi Murakami's flower made a similar journey from print to precious metal. In March 2021 IVXLCDM released a limited edition of thirty 'Flower Parent and Child' necklaces, an eight-centimetre three-dimensional pendant modelled on Murakami's golden sculpture at Roppongi Hills. The Kaikai Kiki pendant on this shelf, in a monochrome gold finish and marked as a limited edition, should be read against that history, and its edition details are worth asking about before anything else. The Louis Vuitton Panda necklace top, in 18K white gold with diamonds and gemstones, brings the artist and the house together in a single object.
What the numbers promise
Japanese gold is marked in karats with a K. K18 means 750 parts gold in every thousand, or 75 per cent, the same fineness that European hallmarks write as 750. Every stamp that a piece carries is photographed, so that the mark can be read as well as described.
Diamonds are described on two scales set by the Gemological Institute of America. Colour runs from D to Z, with D at the top: D to F is called colourless and G to J near colourless, and a stone is judged table down, under controlled light, against master comparison stones. Clarity has eleven grades, from Flawless down to Included. In the VVS grades the inclusions are hard for a skilled grader to see at ten times magnification; in the VS grades they are minor, and may be anywhere from difficult to somewhat easy to see. When the Serpenti Viper ring is described as 4.12 ct, F to G in colour and VVS to VS in clarity, those are the words to hold it to, and the certificate that accompanies it is the document to ask about.
Ring sizes follow the Japanese scale, so the Astrale shield ring is given as JP10 with its US equivalent, 5.25. Our Japanese ring size reference converts the rest.
A small shelf, read closely
A shelf this small is read piece by piece, and each is described in its own terms: weight, width, stones, finish and any certificate. If a document is named in a title, ask to see its detail before you decide. The Authenticity and Condition page explains how a piece is examined, graded and documented in Tokyo, Japan, and the two brand atlases linked below set the Bulgari and Louis Vuitton pieces among their houses' other work.
Looking for a particular house, stone or ring size?
Our Otoriyose private request desk can look within Japan for a specific piece of fine jewellery and reply with what is available.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does K18 mean on a Japanese ring or pendant?
K18 is the Japanese marking for 18-carat gold: 750 parts gold in 1,000, or 75 per cent, equivalent to the European 750 mark.
How are diamond colour and clarity graded?
The Gemological Institute of America grades colour from D to Z, where D to F is colourless and G to J near colourless, and clarity on eleven grades from Flawless to Included. VVS stones have inclusions that are hard to see at ten times magnification; VS stones have minor ones.
When was Bulgari founded, and what is Tubogas?
The silversmith Sotirios Voulgaris launched the company in Rome in 1884. Tubogas is the technique of coiling a flexible metal band, used for Bulgari's Serpenti bracelet-watches from the end of the 1940s.
What is a Louis Vuitton Vivienne?
Vivienne is a flower-headed mascot with a star over one eye, introduced by Louis Vuitton in 2018 on key chains and bag charms. The house turned her into fine jewellery in 2021, in a collection of eleven limited-edition figures that can be worn as pendants or brooches.
How are these pieces documented?
Each piece is examined and documented in Tokyo, Japan. Stones, stamps and any certificate are recorded in plain terms, and the condition is given on the Japanese scale explained on the Authenticity and Condition page.
Sources and last review
Last reviewed 28 October 2026. Curated in Tokyo, Japan by The Japonista Curation and Concierge Team.
