The collection of the Louvre in Paris contains a valuable and unique eagle-shaped jewel that once belonged to the collection of the Polish kings of the Vasa dynasty.

An exceptional jewel
The unique polonica is a jewel of small size (height 9.2 cm and width 7.7 cm) in the shape of an eagle. The eagle is portrayed frontally with its head slightly downwards, bearing a closed crown. In its talons the eagle holds regalia - a scepter and an apple topped with a cross. The jewel is made of gold and is lined with precious stones. The attention is drawn to a large faceted garnet, set in place of the eagle's torso. The outspread wings and tail are lined with rubies, 149 in total. In place of the sceptre handle is an emerald, and a sea pearl dangles from the eagle's tail. In addition, the jewel is decorated with an enamel technique in various colours: white, black and dark blue. The back of the jewel has been just as finely and ornately worked, the goldsmith having very precisely detailed the bird's plumage, outlining it thanks to the enamel technique. On the back, we can also see a vertical clasp, indicating that the jewel was worn as a safety pin.

Gem type
According to researchers, the popularity of the so-called eagle jewels begins in antiquity. The type of frontal representation, with a clear axis of symmetry, with a large stone exposed in the middle of the bird's torso, was already known in the 13th century and popular until the 18th century. Most of the surviving works are interpreted as elements of state or family heraldry. Jewels were created in the shape of eagles, with the insignia of power, i.e. a sceptre and an apple, and may additionally have borne the family coat of arms. They could be worn as safety pins or hung on chains around the neck. At the time, they acted as an identifier of the identity of a particular person or family; in the case of ruling families, it was a customary ostentation of power.

During the reign of the Vasa dynasty in Poland, such jewels may have been worn as chain pendants, as evidenced by the 'Portraits of Konstancja Austriaczka', wife of Sigismund III (now in the Old Pinakothek in Munich, inv. no. 7009).

History
The jewel in the Louvre's collection belonged to the Vasa collection and was made at that time, dating to around 1640-1660, and was possibly made for the first wife of Ladislaus IV Vasa, Cecilia Renata (1611-1644). The jewel was taken to France, probably after the abdication of King John Casimir (1609-1672) in 1668, together with his possessions, which were being sold off in France. In 1669, the jewel became the property of King Louis XIV of France, whose collection then became part of the collection of the Louvre museum.

This unique jewel was shown in Poland during the exhibition 'To rule and dazzle', held at the Royal Castle in Warsaw, in 2019.

Currently, the Louvre's digital collection shows misleading information that the jewel depicts the Polish White Eagle. On top of this, the authors of the note provided erroneous information that the decoration of the Order of the White Eagle was established in February 1325 by King Władysław I.