In Laura Jane Coulson’s short film Florence Welch is adorned in the new Gucci Hortus Deliciarum High Jewelry collection by Alessandro Michele. She walks amongst the ornate details of the new Gucci Vendôme boutique which houses the fine and high jewelry collections. Coulson shows their details alongside glimpses of the store’s grandeur, the famed Parisian square—the address of the store, and the singer, songwriter and poet performing at the Petit Palais to celebrate the launch of the collection.

Hortus Deliciarum echoes the eclectic quixotism of Michele’s vision, drawing on motifs that are dear to him and are symbolic of Gucci’s distinctive canon of house iconography. The collection comprises more than 200 pieces, mainly one of a kind, and its motifs revolve around a trio of themes and seen through the prism of a mythical garden of Eden, Arcadia or Xanadu — but, most significantly, of Gucci.

The first pays homage to classical emblems of eternal love. It centers on vivid colored gemstones crossed with plume-tipped sagittate arrows, which glimmer on pink sapphire, yellow beryl and blue sapphire brooches with en tremblant movement as though having just been plucked by Cupid himself. The sense of romance is intertwined with settings that voluptuously wallow in the past, layering historical styles including Rococo, Baroque and Georgian.

The second chapter is an ode to the majesty of the animal kingdom, evoking mythic bestiary and ancient fauna. The symbolic strength of the Lion, the courage and passion of the Tiger, the wisdom and renewal of Ouroboros serpents, and the magical mysticism of Dionysus populate Gucci’s world of jewels and comprise the crest of this animal kingdom. A swarm of colour-block gemstone-headed bees offer magpie choice, and intricate tritons become lavender sapphire cuffs and pendants.

Finally, singular and striking solitaires are redefined with maximalist allure. Pear-cut colored gemstones, intense and joyous, are juxtaposed with heirloom settings and recall the vibrant colors of a garden in full bloom: honey-hued imperial topaz, blushed-rosé topaz, velvety green tourmaline the hypnotic glow of mandarin garnet.

The Gucci Hortus Deliciarum High Jewelry collection is inhabited by magical beasts and flowering with totemic symbols of love, distilling the beauty of past and present and evoking the splendor of love and nature.