A pair of beautiful Van Cleef lion door knocker earrings. These clip‑back earrings are signed and made in France in solid 18k yellow gold and weigh roughly 48 grams in total. Designed as high‑relief lion masks, their manes catch the light like brushstrokes in high‑karat gold. Each head is carved in bold relief, the fur rendered as tight, directional striations, the muzzle pushed forward to grip a textured ring that hangs freely and can swing with the slightest movement.
The earrings are an elegant echo of the lion masks that have guarded thresholds since ancient Greece and Victorian London, where the motif came to signal strength, pride, protection and power at the front door.
Van Cleef & Arpels took that architectural emblem and, in the hedonistic 1960s, turned it into jewelry. Drawn to India, North Africa and a broader menagerie of fauna, the Maison developed a language of lions, panthers and mythic creatures that played against its more familiar floral clips and ballerina brooches. Within Van Cleef & Arpels’ 1960s repertoire, this door‑knocker silhouette became a beloved classic: a design that condensed centuries of threshold symbolism into something you could wear out to dinner. This lion no longer waits at the door. It leaves with you.
Vintage Signed Van Cleef & Arpels Lion Door Knocker Earrings
18 Karat Yellow Gold
1.5 inches in length
48.2 grams in total
c.1960s-70s
Made in France
