RARE Vintage Paper Clip Chain, by Cartier Dinh Van

Likely one of the rarest vintage paper clip chains to exist in the market - a chain collab between designer Dinh Van and Cartier.

The story of Dinh Van and Cartier is one of those irresistible chapters in jewelry history.  A young, bold designer begins his journey at the legendary Cartier, breaks away to carve out his own vision, and then circles back for a collaboration that feels almost too good to be true. 

In the late 1940s, Jean Dinh Van, a young French-Vietnamese artisan, began working at Cartier’s workshops in Paris.  After training at the École des Arts Décoratifs, he joined Cartier around 1950, starting as an apprentice and later becoming a jeweler on the creative team led by Jeanne Toussaint.

At that time, Cartier was known for its traditional high jewelry, featuring lavish gemstones, aristocratic clients, and pieces made for special occasions.  Dinh Van spent about ten years there, mastering classical techniques and learning the precision and discipline of the Place Vendôme tradition.

But as he honed his craft, Dinh Van felt the pull of something different—something fresher, more daring.

By the mid-1960s, Dinh Van was itching for change.  Fashion, architecture, and design had all leapt into modern simplicity, but jewelry still clung to the old ways.

So in 1965, he left Cartier behind and opened his own studio in Paris.  His dream?  To create jewelry that was minimal, geometric, and made to be worn every day—not just saved for special occasions.

He preferred pure forms like circles, tubes, squares, and bold metal shapes instead of ornate settings.  His work fit well with the spirit of the late 1960s.

But even after Dinh Van walked away from Cartier, their story was far from finished.

By 1967, Cartier’s New York branch couldn’t ignore the buzz around Dinh Van’s fresh, modern designs.  They collaborated for nearly a decade.  During those years, his pieces appeared in Cartier boutiques across the US, often stamped with the rare and coveted double signature: Cartier Dinh Van.

This was rare in the jewelry world because Cartier almost never shared authorship so openly.  The partnership enabled Cartier to embrace Dinh Van’s bold, modern style, while Dinh Van gained international exposure through Cartier’s strong retail network.

Many of these pieces were designed in Paris and made in the United States under his supervision.  They brought a fresh, avant-garde look to Cartier’s boutiques at a time when design was changing quickly.

A great collector's piece!

• 18kt Yellow Gold
  
• 3.80mm wide links
  
• 24" in length
  
• 23.6 Grams