Color-themed posters for the exhibition "The Art of Jewellery" at the Lotte Museum of Art / Courtesy of Lotte Museum of Art
At 72, Kazumi Arikawa's life has been anything but straightforward. Growing up in the southern Japanese city of Fukuoka, he was raised by a single mother who ran a contemporary jewelry store. Yet, when it came time to find his own calling, he set out on a meandering journey of self-discovery.
Japanese antique jewelry dealer and collector Kazumi Arikawa speaks during a press preview for "The Art of Jewellery" exhibition, presented to showcase his 208-piece collection, at the Lotte Museum of Art in southern Seoul, Dec. 5, 2024. Newsis
His first stop was Buddhism, dedicating two years to training as a monk. However, the disciplined, ascetic lifestyle wasn't the right fit, and he eventually returned to the secular world. For a time, he aspired to become a university professor, but his deep-seated lack of self-confidence stood in his way.
In 1982, during a visit to the jewelry gallery at London's Victoria and Albert Museum, he experienced what he later described as a “heart-shaking” moment — one that would change his life forever.
Returning to Japan, Arikawa joined his family business, now managed by his sister, but with a new vision: to deal in antique Western gems, treating them as timeless works of art — treasures that have withstood the test of time for millennia, radiating their silent, enduring sparkles.
It turned out to be a strategic business decision, too, as Japan at the time “lacked a Western-style tradition of jewelry,” he noted in a 2020 interview with The New York Times, leaving him with little competition in the market.
For him, the focus on jewelry also retained an unexpected connection with his Buddhist faith. In religious art, bodhisattvas are often adorned with elaborate clothing, tiaras, necklaces and anklets to symbolize the transcendent beauty and splendor of paradise.
Ruby-and-diamond bracelets that once belonged to the Duchesse d'Angouleme, the eldest daughter of Queen Marie Antoinette / Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
An iron demi-parure from 19th-century Germany / Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
Queen Victoria's coronation girandole earrings (1761) and a bangle offered by the English queen to Queen Stephanie of Portugal (1858) / Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
A chatelaine and watch of the Duke of Wellington (1809) / Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
With this insight, he founded Albion Art, an antique jewelry shop in Fukuoka, and began building his personal collection alongside it.
Over the last four decades, the Japanese dealer and collector has amassed over 500 historic ornaments. His acquisitions — regarded by specialists as one of the world's most extensive private collections of precious jewels — span the breadth of Western history, from ancient Mesopotamian and Greek artifacts to European royal treasures, as well as gems from the Art Nouveau and Art Deco movements.
And now, a curated selection of 208 masterpieces from Arikawa's holding has arrived at the Lotte Museum of Art in southern Seoul for its first-ever public outing from storage.
While a handful of his jewels have previously been featured in prominent exhibitions, including at the V&A Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, “The Art of Jewellery” marks the first time the collection is being revealed on such a large scale.
Installation view of the "Ring" section at the Lotte Museum of Art's "The Art of Jewellery" / Courtesy of Lotte Museum of Art
Hellenistic gold necklace and earrings from 4th-century B.C.E. Greece / Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
A 19th-century gold-and-aquamarine parure of the Marchioness of Rumigny / Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
“I believe that jewelry is more than just adornment or luxury; it carries a deeper, higher spiritual essence,” Arikawa remarked during a recent press preview at the Seoul museum. “Gems possess a timelessness unmatched by anything else on Earth, with a lifespan and beauty far exceeding that of humanity.”
As a practicing Buddhist, he also expressed profound gratitude toward Korea, referencing King Seong of the Baekje Dynasty, who introduced Buddhist statues and scriptures to Japan in the sixth century and laid the foundation for the religion to take root there.
“Therefore, I believe Japan owes Korea a significant historical debt,” he said. “If this exhibition, designed to present the essence of sublime beauty, can repay even 100-millionth of the grace Korea showed us back then, it would bring me immense joy.”
A 5,100-year-old marble pig amulet from Mesopotamia; a Hellenistic golden wreath of olive leaves; a natural pearl brooch once donned by Russia's Catherine the Great; Queen Victoria's coronation earrings; an Art Nouveau ornament co-designed by Alphonse Mucha and Georges Fouquet; a 19th-century diamond-and-topaz parure from the Royal House of Württemberg; and a Cartier Japanese Garden Clock, crafted from precious minerals and coral, all shimmer brilliantly in darkness — a spatial concept envisioned by celebrated Japanese architect Kengo Kuma.
An early 19th-century topaz-and-diamond parure from the Royal House of Württemberg / Korea Times photo by Park Han-sol
But the true highlight of the show lies toward the end.
One dedicated section showcases 31 tiaras — objects of Arikawa's particular fascination. Radiant like halos, tiaras have long been a marker of royalty and sacred status. Yet, at the beginning of his collecting journey, these adornments were considered “out of fashion” and largely overlooked by other monied aficionados.
Gracing this section are diamond tiaras in a variety of motifs — ears of wheat, flowers, Valkyrie wings and the Star of Bethlehem — once worn by European royalty and nobility, now glowing as historic testaments to exquisite craftsmanship.
A rock crystal cross of Christ and the evangelists, crafted by Renaissance master gem engraver Valerio Belli between 1515 and 1520 / Courtesy of Lotte Museum of Art
Valerio Belli's cross is said to contain fragments of the True Cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified — fragments authenticated by the Vatican. Courtesy of Lotte Museum of Art
As their promenade through the garden of tiaras draws to a close, visitors are led into a final, pitch-dark hallway. At its far end, illuminated in solitary brilliance, stands a single crucifix.
This rock crystal reliquary was born in the 16th century at the hands of Renaissance master gem engraver Valerio Belli. It is said to contain fragments of the True Cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified — fragments authenticated by the Vatican. Of the three surviving editions of this masterpiece, the other two are housed in Vatican City and the V&A Museum.
“As an advocate for the art of jewelry, it has long been my wish to create a sacred place where as many people as possible can directly experience and immerse themselves in the beauty and emotion of this world,” the collector shared. “I firmly believe that this sacred time and space of beauty will allow us to feel the inseparable connection between ourselves as beings and the planet that gives us life.”
“The Art of Jewellery” runs through March 16 at the Lotte Museum of Art.