Custom design or royal mess: Tiffany & Co accused of replicating spectacles worn by Mughal ruler
Tiffany & Co, the luxury jewellery brand, and American rapper Pharrell Williams have stirred up a storm on the internet, and in the world of fashion. Making headlines for all the wrong reasons, the musician recently attended French luxury label Kenzo's show in Paris, sporting a pair of ‘custom-designed’ Tiffany & Co glittering diamond sunglasses. But netizens, including fashion watchdogs such as Diet Prada, were quick to notice that the pair was a carbon copy of extraordinarily rare and antique spectacles worn by a 17th century Mughal ruler.
The internet immediately pointed out striking similarities between the two pieces and blasted the renowned jewellery label for not giving credit where it is due. Diet Prada, a fashion watchdog group, also called them out in a scornful Instagram post.
On Sunday, Kenzo unveiled the debut collection of its first Japanese designer, Nigo, since house founder Kenzo Takada. Apart from Kanye West and Julia Fox, the star-studded front row also featured Pharrell, who was present for the first showing of the Tiffany glasses and hinted at his collaboration with the brand. "Tiffany and I are engaged," the singer told WWD.
Later, the Instagram page of Tiffany & Co posted Pharrell's picture wearing the "custom-designed" sunglasses in 18k gold featuring "61 round brilliant diamonds of over 25 total carats and two emerald-cut emeralds". Fashion watchdog Diet Sabya commented on the post, writing, “The sheer audacity to copy this Mughal piece!” The jewellery brand’s post instantly went viral, with social media users furious over the blatant plagiarism of the Mughal emperor’s glasses.
The frames were believed to have originally belonged to Mughal royals, who once ruled over the Indian subcontinent. One pair of teardrop-shaped frame lenses are believed to have been cut from a Colombian emerald over 300 carats. The other, likely “cleaved from a 200-carat diamond found in Golconda, a region in the present-day Indian states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh”.
Interestingly, the spectacles were designed to help the wearer reach enlightenment and ward off evil. According to auction house Sotheby’s chairman Edward Gibbs, the gemstones were prized for their spiritual associations—diamonds with “celestial light” and bright stones as “vehicles for astral forces.” Green in particular, is linked to paradise, salvation, and eternal life in Islam, the religion practiced by Mughal rulers. In October 2021, the original frames were placed on auction. They expected to fetch as much as GBP2.5 million but didn't sell. Additionally, according to Gibbs, the eyewear was not meant to improve sight. "As far as we know, there are no others like them," Gibbs told CNN.
‘Where is the credit?’
Social media outrage was real following the Tiffany & Co fiasco. A user commented, "'Custom-designed' or custom-copied?" Another wrote, "Custom? Where’s the credit to Mughal Era -17th century India?" One more penned, “Latest in cultural confusion.”
A Twitter user lamented, “Tiffany & Co and Pharrell forgot to tell us how inspired they were by Emperor Shah Jehan’s emerald glasses.” Another user on the micro-blogging site posted, “It is about exploiting the working class. You didn’t design these! They are a copy from a Mughal ruler from the 17th century. Come on, give credit where it is due. Shameful!”
Diet Prada added, “It’s kind of a knock off version of this 17th century glasses, just saying!” Reacting to the post, a user commented, “This is pretty cringle. Thank you for calling this out.” Many users bashed the fashion industry too. “Maybe brands should stop inviting celebrities to design and give this opportunity to young design students. The fashion industry needs a serious reset,” read a post, while another user wrote on the photo-sharing platform, “If we’re going be calling out brands and holding them accountable for copying antique and vintage items you’ll have to call out basically the whole industry? Ridiculous.”
A netizen penned, “I don’t think it’s a terrible thing to copy a design from the 17th century, but it’s a little ridiculous that they don’t mention the originals. I think it would actually help sales and not make them look so unimaginative. How do people actually think they can get away with such blatant copies?” Some even found Tiffany’s creation to be tacky. “Besides the obvious copying, the Tiffany pair is just tacktastic. Nothing compared to the droolworthy original.”
Blasting Pharrell, a user wrote, “A little disappointing considering how influential Pharrell has been in fashion. (Only black musician to ever have a collab with Chanel, of all brands) And Billionaire Boys Club and BAPE was practically my middle school uniform. Pharrell is getting old now though. A lazy collab like this is to be expected. Busted, this is a whole other level of colonialism.”
And, of course, memes followed too, with one user writing, “When you haven’t understood the assignment so you ctrl+c and follow it up by ctrl+v."