One of these Houses is Chaumet. It belongs to the most respected jewelry brands, and in terms of age, too, because the year of its foundation can be safely considered 1789, when Marie Etienne Nito opened his first jewelry store in Paris on Saint-Onore street.
Legend has it that the turning point in the fate of master Nito and his affairs was a normal day in 1802, when Marie-Etienne stopped a horse that carried its bewildered rider. That rider was the French consul, who later became one of the most famous and odious world rulers - Napoleon Bonaparte. Later, when Napoleon became emperor, he invited the man who saved his life to the post of court jeweler, and the master Nito gained access to such clients as he could only dream of. He was honored to create jewelry for the Empress Maria Louise and Josephine, as well as other persons of royal blood.
The successor of Mr. Nito was Jean-Baptiste Vossen, a jeweler of exceptional talent, who also worked with his son, Jules. These masters chose naturalism for themselves, because in all their creations they tried to achieve the maximum resemblance to real objects - flowers, fruits, etc.
The next ones to take over the Vossenov case were Jean Valentin Morel and his son Prosper, who achieved tremendous success: after the 1848 revolution, they opened a company branch in London and received the honorary status of Queen Victoria's court jewelers.
Thanks to Morel, jewelry products made a splash at the 1851 World's Fair. Where did the current brand name come from? The fact is that Joseph Chaumet (Jozeph Chaumet) married Prosper Morel's daughter, who became the head of the House and in 1895 gave him a new name - Chaumet. Chaumet House decorations have gained popularity not only in France and the UK. Even representatives of the Russian nobility indulged themselves with the delightful jewels of French jewelers. Among the fans of the House were the Golitsins, Obolensky, Orlov, Prince Yusupov, Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna and many others ...
However, the name Chaumet was glorified not only thanks to exquisite jewelry, a considerable share of its products have always been occupied by unique watch tools.
The first watches were released by the House in 1811. In order to emphasize its watchmaking heritage, this year Chaumet House organized the exhibition “Chaumet: 200 Years of Watchmaking”, which featured special watches from the new anniversary collection reflecting the ideals of the jewelry house, both in watchmaking and jewelry. The exhibition featured more than 20 copies of rare watches created for famous historical figures and royalty, including a pair of bracelet watches made by Francois Nito himself in 1811 for Princess Auguste de Beauvaire, wife of the Viceroy of Italy.
Both bracelets looked the same and were worn together: one showed the time, the other - the date and month. The bracelets are made of yellow gold, and the thin oval dials are framed by pearls and emeralds.
In addition, visitors to the exhibition could see gift watches for Napoleon with his monogram, pearls and enamel, and the Empress Maria-Louise of Austria, made in 1813 by the "imperial" period of the House of Chaumet; Chatelaine belt watches made in the 1850s of the “romantic" period; 1908 watches made by Joseph Chaumet using platinum, gold, diamonds, natural pearls and blue enamel. The 1910 Chatelaine watch with platinum, diamonds, emeralds and enamel, commissioned by the Duke de Luin, attracted much attention; a wristwatch with blue enamel of 1915 with platinum, white gold, diamonds and enamel, as well as Arabic numerals on the dial, characterizing the period of the “beautiful era”; 1924 Regence pendant watch with platinum, emeralds, pink diamonds, refined crystal and enamel, and a 1925 wristwatch with platinum, diamonds and a Jaeger-LeCoultre movement from the Art Deco period.
The filigree work of jewelers and unique precise mechanisms created in the workshops of the Chaumet House, to this day remain examples of the highest talent and unique vision of beauty, characteristic of this brand for more than two hundred years.
