Diving for Starfish

Part history, part mystery, this chronicle shares the author's quest to uncover the true story of a rare trio of elegant jewelry pieces fashioned in 1930s Paris. In the mid 1930s, in the workroom of the famous Parisian jeweler Boivin, a young jewelry designer named Juliette Moutard created one of the most coveted pieces of jewelry in the world—the famous starfish pin—still sought after today by aficionados of fine jewelry. The starfish, created out of gold and encrusted with 71 cabochon rubies and 241 small amethysts, was distinctive because its five rays were articulated, meaning that they could curl and conform to the bustline or shoulder of the women who wore it. The House of Boivin made three of them. Two of the women who bought and wore the starfish were Claudette Colbert and Millicent Rogers. Obsessed with the pin after she saw it in the private showroom of a Manhattan jewelry merchant, Cherie Burns set off on a journey to find out all she could about the elusive pins and the women who owned them. Her search took her around the world to Paris, London, New York, and Hollywood. Diving for Starfish is the story of these marvelous pieces of jewelry and the equally dazzling women who loved them. " Diving for Starfish is filled with drama and intrigue, and peopled by a cast of characters worthy of The Maltese Falcon ." ― Wall Street Journal "Quick, fun, easy reading for devotees of high fashion and mystery fans, complete with wrong turns and false friends." ― Kirkus Reviews