Wolfers’ fascinating Medusa to be kept for posterity

The Heritage Fund of the King Baudouin Foundation, has made an exceptional purchase: the ‘Medusa’ pendant by Wolfers. This piece of jewellery will be on display in the Wolfers Store, the permanent exhibition at the Art & History Museum in Brussels where the work of this Belgian art nouveau giant can be seen at its best.

Philippe Wolfers (1858-1929), together with Victor Horta, Henry van de Velde and Paul Hankar, is one of the best known figures in Belgian art nouveau internationally. The pendant was designed in 1898 and it is seen as an absolute icon of Belgian art nouveau jewellery. It is a remarkable piece, crafted from gold, enamel, ivory, opal and diamonds, and had been in private ownership for many years.

Wishing the jewel to remain in Belgium, the owner contacted the Foundation as a matter of priority and left it to the Foundation to decide whether to acquire the jewel, which the Foundation was able to do through its Heritage Fund. The King Baudouin Foundation will then give the pendant on loan to the Art & History Museum at Jubelpark/Cinquantenaire Park in Brussels. The necklace will be exposed in the Wolfers Shop, the museum’s permanent exhibition, where it can be viewed by the public.

“Acquiring this piece is a vital addition to the unique collection of jewellery by Philippe Wolfers. Within the group of Wolfers pieces with a symbolic meaning, this is the artist’s absolute masterpiece,” says Werner Adriaenssens, Curator of 20th Century Decorative Arts at the Royal Museums of Art and History.

Images of the Medusa pendant in high resolution are available on request with Thierry Van Noppen: vannoppen.t@kbs-frb.be, +32 (0)479 31 85 56

About the Heritage Fund

The Heritage Fund of the King Baudouin Foundation, has been working since 1988 to keep works of art in Belgium, look after them and bring them to the attention of the public. The works and documents that are purchased are given on permanent loan to museums and cultural institutions in Belgium. In the course of more than thirty years the Heritage Fund - with help from many donations - has built up a large, representative collection. It currently holds around 26,931 works of art and 26 archives.