A Belle Epoque Diamond and Aquamarine Brooch, circa 1910
Sold for £18,400 ($30,500)
June 1998
London, King Street
Chaumet
Originally founded in 1780 under a different name by Marie-Etienne Nitot, the firm became the official jeweler to Napoleon. Among their achievements were the Consular sword, the tiara of Pius VII and the grand parures ordered by the Empresses Jospehine and Marie-Louise. After the fall of Napoleon, the business continued under the direction of Jean-Baptiste Fossin and his son Jules, both artists who succeeded in capturing the spirit of Romanticism in jewelry just as Nitot & Fils had done for the Empire. The year 1889 heralded the rise of Chaumet, a jeweler from Bordeaux, when he took over the company and changed its name. The firm became the jeweler to many of the royal houses of Europe and won numerous awards at international exhibitions.
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