REGAL TREASURES
Fit for a queen, the latest collections by Damiani capture the legacy of the imperial Russian regalia infused with Italian allure. Karishma Tulsidas gets the story
elding the opulence of Russian regalia with Italian craftsmanship, Damiani takes a walk down memory lane to a bygone era where tsars and tsarinas were the arbiters of style through its latest collections, the Fiori d’arancio and the Fiocco. As avid collectors of all things beautiful, the Russian imperial family had an extensive litany of spellbinding jewels and gems, many of which have unfortunately been looted and lost over the years. With the Fiori d’arancio and the Fiocco lines, Damiani seeks to revisit those Russian splendours by emulating the motifs that abounded during the reign of the tsars. We have a chat with vice president of the maison, Giorgio Damiani, and discover how the collections came about. He says, “These two lines are inspired by the valuables of the imperial family and reveal the excellence of the master goldsmiths in Valencia, and re-evoking the legendary charm surrounding the tsars’ treasures.” The sinuous bows of the Fiocco, for example, were derived from the personal wardrobe of Catherine the Great, the longest ruling female leader in Russia in the 16th century. The ultimate #girlboss, she took the reigns of the country after her husband was assassinated, and was responsible for leading Russia into the golden age. She may have been one tough iron lady (with various paramours, it has been rumoured), but her motif of choice was the playful and feminine bow. Giving us a history lesson in the evolution of the bow within European courts, Giorgio explains that the motif was developed in the middle of the 17th century as the result of an impulse of Marie de RabutinChantal, known as Madame de Sévigné. “She was one of the first women in the French court to decorate the front of her bodice with bow-shaped diamond jewels. The bows were so successful in the Russian court that they spread not only in the simple parures but also stitched directly to garments. Catherine the Great had them for the daytime and pave versions for the evening,” enthuses Giorgio. Available in a soft pink gold and voguish white gold, the bow has been meticulously crafted in Damiani’s workshops, injecting a dose of glamour and pizzazz to the pedestrian motif. It comes fully bedazzled in a pave version for the evening, and a simpler iteration for the day—catherine the Great would have certainly approved.