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Louis Comfort Tiffany only produced a few hundred pieces of his art jewellery. The so-called "peacock" necklace in the Morse Museum is probably the designer's most important existing work in the medium. Though reportedly designed for the debut of his line of art jewellery at the 1904 Universal Exposition in St. Louis, the peacock necklace was not exhibited until 1906 at the Société des Artistes Français in Paris. The front medallion features a peacock mosaic of opals and enamels surrounded by amethysts and sapphires. Exhibition pieces were finished on both sides, and the back of the necklace is an enamelled design of pink flamingoes.
Unlike the extravagant jewellery produced under the direction of Charles Tiffany at Tiffany & Co., Louis's jewellery was distinguished by design and colour. He executed his innovative creations - many drawing from the organic forms that had inspired him in glass - using largely semiprecious stones and enamels. His father, on the other hand, had built a reputation using precious jewels purchased from post-revolution European royalty.
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