Book excerpt: This sumptuous clothbound volume reviews the history of the legendary French perfume, watch and jewelry designers Van Cleef & Arpels. The Paris-based company's prestige stems from a long list of prominent commissionsissued by royal and imperial courts, financiers and industrial magnates, and its work resides in prominent treasuries worldwide. The full range of Van Cleef & Arpels' extraordinary jewelry has now been reassembled from numerous private collections and public museums, and is presented here together for the first time. The designs are grouped under four different headings: "Spirit of Beauty," "Spirit of Elegance," "Spirit of Adventure" and "Incarnation." The photographer for this book is Patrick Gries of La Fondation Cartier; an introduction by the great movie actress Catherine Deneuve sums up the elegance of the Van Cleef & Arpels style.