The Meridian Line

Look closely and the cuff gives itself away as Art Nouveau: opals, worn thin at the back where a hand has turned it for a century, held by chased naturalistic goldwork. Each stone is closed in its own collet, the way settings were made before machines. A dealer we trust brought it down from a Viennese collection, kept in a bank drawer far longer than it was ever worn. It has outlived everyone who owned it and shows no sign of stopping.