Lady’s-slipper orchid

Materials: jasper, jade, metal.

Height: 232 mm

The lady’s slipper orchid is the most unusual and graceful flower in Eurasia. It is a perennial plant belonging to the orchid family. It gets its name from the unusual shape of the petal-cup, very similar to a miniature slipper, and the rest of the petals are velvet ribbons around it.

According to legend, the owner of this unusual shoe is thought to be the Greek goddess of beauty and love, Cyprida, also known as Aphrodite or Venus. The name of the flower comes from fairy tales and legends, and the flower, with its unusual shape, looking like a woman’s silk slipper, appeared on earth thanks to the sweet forgetfulness and absent-mindedness of the goddess Venus. According to one legend, Venus and Adonis, who were in love, hid in the crown of a tree during a rainstorm, and the golden slipper slipped off the goddess’ feet right onto the road. A stranger passing by found the slipper and decided to pick it up, but as soon as he reached out his hand, it turned into a beautiful flower, which was shaped like a slipper.