Hallowed Heritage
From a small boutique in napoleonic paris to an international brand beloved by royalty and stars alike, Boucheron’s history reads like a european fairy tale, Melissa Twigg writes
The Bouquet d’ailes necklace, inspired by butterflies and dragonflies, is from Boucheron’s L’artisan du Rêve collection y 1858, Frédéric Boucheron was famous in the salons of Paris for his ability to design exquisite pieces of jewellery for the most glamorous women in French society. Unusually for a jeweller of that era, he decided to open a store under the gabled arches of the Palais Royale, which is tucked just behind the Louvre, to show off his wares. His small, apothecary-like shop was soon packed with visitors who would travel specially to the French capital to admire his work with gold, rubies and peridots.
Over time, Boucheron became known as the jeweller who could recreate the wonders of nature in metal form. As his career progressed, he borrowed with increasing frequency from the natural world, creating bracelets shaped like curled snakes, rings fashioned to resemble monkeys and delicate