Maker Biographies

Learn more about the artists behind the jewels

A

Albert, Gilbert

“In the enchanted world of jewellery, every piece...

Aletto Bros.

The Aletto family have been making fine hand...

Anton, Barbara

The American artist jeweller Barbara Miller Anton was...

Asprey

The world renowned Royal Warrant holding luxury goods...

Aucoc, Louis

Louis Aucoc made an important contribution to the...

Audemars Piguet

Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet were...

Auger

The Maison Auger was founded by Louis-Alphonse Auger...

Bailey, Banks & Biddle

Bailey, Banks & Biddle started life as Bailey...

Bapst & Falize

During a twelve year period at the end...

Belperron, Suzanne

Suzanne Belperron believed her jewellery designs to be...

Bennett, Val

Artist Val Bennett was born in London in...

Benson, JW

The prestigious firm of J.W. Benson was one...

Berlioz Leroy

Mademoiselle Berlioz and Monsieur Leroy established their jewellery...

Black, Starr & Frost

In the 1953 film ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’ when...

Boivin, Rene

The French firm of Boivin was founded in...

Boregaard, Pedro

“Some pieces I can visualize so perfectly that...

Boucheron

Frédéric Boucheron supplied jewels to some of the...

Bourdier, Theodule

Théodule Bourdier was born in Paris in 1837...

Bowles, Ian

Artist Ian Bowles was born in 1946 and...

Brandt, Paul Emile

Best remembered for his bold and innovative Art...

Breguet

Abraham-Louis Bréguet (1747 – 1823) was born in...

Brogden, John

John Brogden was one of the best known...

Buccellati

When Mario Buccellati (1891-1965) returned from war in...

Bulgari

In 1880 a young Greek silversmith, Sotirios Boulgaris,...

Burdy

Henri Auguste Burdy was a French sculptor and...

Burton, Amy

“My aim is to design finely crafted beautiful...

Bury, Pol

Pol Bury was a Belgian artist who worked...

Caldwell & Co. JE

“For those who love beauty and who insist...

Carreras

Carreras was one of the oldest family jewellers...

Carrington & Co.

The firm of Carrington was named after its...

Cartier

When Louis-François Cartier (1819-1904) opened his small jewellery...

Castellani

Fortunato Pio Castellani (1794 – 1865) founded his...

Chan, Wallace

“For more than four decades gemstones have been...

Chanel

“I chose the diamond because it represents, in...

Chantecler

“Every day Capri's energy, colours and scents create...

Charlton & Co.

Founded in 1909 Charlton & Co are probably...

Chatila

George Chatila opened his eponymous jewellery firm in...

Chaumet

The story of Chaumet is a long and...

Child & Child

Walter Child (1840 – 1930) and his younger...

Chopard

A small farming village in the mountainous region...

Cipullo, Aldo

Famous for designing one of the most popular...

Claflin, Donald

The American designer Donald Claflin was born in...

Cohen, Julius

Julius Cohen (1914 – 1995) founded his eponymous...

Cooperman, Marilyn

Marylin Cooperman was born in Toronto Canada and...

Costagli, Paolo

“The idea and purpose of fine jewellery is...

Cummings, Angela

Angela Cummings was born in Klagenfurt, Austria in...

Dali, Salvador

“My aim is to put the art of...

De Grisogono

Swiss jewellery firm De Grisogono was founded in...

Debacq & Cie

The Parisian jewellery firm of Debacq traces its...

Descomps, Joe

Emanuel Jules Joseph Descomps was a French sculptor...

Despres, Jean

Despres is remembered as one of a group...

Dinh Van, Jean

Born just outside Paris in 1927 to a...

Dior

“As a rule I would use jewellery generously...

Drayson, Cecil

The firm of Cecil Drayson Ltd was founded...

Dreicer & Co.

The name Dreicer is little known today but...

Dunand, Jean

Jean Dunand was one of the most significant...

Dunay, Henry

“Jewellery should be an extension of the wearer…....

Dusausoy

Dusausoy are best remembered for their exciting Art...

Duval et Le Turcq

Julien Duval (b. 1865) and Georges Le Turcq...

Faberge, Carl

Artist, craftsman, perfectionist, connoisseur, visionary – Carl Fabergé...

Falize

The name Falize typically conjures images of brightly...

Fasano

Mario Fasano (1900 – 1968) founded his eponymous...

Feuillâtre, Eugène

Eugène Feuillâtre was renowned for the beauty and...

Flato, Paul

Born in September 1900 into a prosperous family...

Fontana

The Parisian jewellery firm of Fontana was founded...

Fontenay, Eugène

Fontenay was one of the outstanding French goldsmiths...

Fouquet

From 1860 until 1936, three successive generations of...

Fred

Looking back over a lifetime in the jewellery...

Gage, Elizabeth

Elizabeth Gage was born in 1937 into an...

Garrard

Garrard, the famous London firm of silversmiths and...

Gattle

New York jeweller E.M. Gattle &Co. might not...

Gay Frères

Gay Frères was founded in 1835 in Geneva...

Gazdar

Jewellery firm Gazdar was established in Mumbai in...

Georland

The Georland atelier was founded in Paris by...

Gérard, M

After many years working for one of jewellery’s...

Gérard, Victor

Victor Gérard created beautifully crafted and imaginative jewels...

Giuliano

The Italian jeweller Carlo Giuliano (1831-1895) came to...

Graff

“I have always been fascinated by diamonds; I...

Grima, Andrew

For a man whose jewellery career began more...

Gübelin

The Swiss family firm of Gübelin is as...

Hammerman Brothers

The American firm of Hammerman Brothers was founded...

Hancocks

Within the archives of the London jewellers Hancocks,...

Hemmerle

“Our own philosophy resonates with poetry - originality,...

Hennell

The renowned firm of Hennell was founded by...

Hermès

The world famous French company Hermès was established...

Heyman Bros, Oscar

“We want to sell jewellery the grandchildren fight...

Hunt & Roskell

Hunt & Roskell was a renowned jewellers and...

Illario

The Italian fine jewellery firm of Carlo Illario...

Jaeger LeCoultre

Antoine LeCoultre (1803 – 1881), a talented self-taught...

Jakob, Otto

“‘A piece of jewellery is sophisticated when it...

Janesich

Famed for producing some of the most stylish...

JAR

"Everything conspires to make you bigger and more...

Jensen, Georg

Thirty seven years old, widowed and with two...

Kinsella, Lucy

“A desire for being with, observing and drawing...

Kitching & Abud

The jewellery firm of Kitching & Abud was...

Köchert, A.E.

The esteemed Austrian jewellery firm of A.E. Köchert...

Kutchinsky

The Kutchinsky business was established in 1893 when...

La Triomphe

‘La Triomphe’ was the name given to a...

Lacaze, René Sim

René Sim Lacaze was one of the most...

Lacloche Frères

Leopold, Jacques, Jules and Fernand Lacloche were not...

Lalaounis, Ilias

“I feel that in all my creations I...

Lalique, René

The term revolutionary cannot be so aptly applied...

Le Saché, Georges

Georges Le Saché was a highly respected jewellery...

Legnazzi

Legnazzi is an Italian family of jewellers from...

Lenfant, Georges

Georges Lenfant could be described as one of...

Liberty & Co.

Arthur Lasenby Liberty (1843 – 1917) opened his...

Linzeler Marchak

In 1922 the Parisian jeweller Robert Linzeler entered...

Linzeler, Eugene

Today the name Linzeler is best remembered for...

Linzeler, Robert

Robert Linzeler was the grandson of Eugène Linzeler...

Lummertz, Irene

Irene Lummertz’s interest in gemstones was sparked at...

Mahie, Jean

Jean Mahie jewellery is the result of a...

Makovsky, Vladimir

Makovsky was a true master craftsman whose exceptional...

Mappin & Webb

Mappin & Webb was formerly established in 1889...

Marchak

Often referred to as the ‘Cartier of Kiev’,...

Marcus & Co.

Herman Marcus was born in Germany in 1828...

Marina B

Marina Bulgari was born in 1930 into one...

Marsh & Co.

G.T. Marsh & Co. (also known as Marsh...

Marzo

Lorenzo Marzo was a jeweller of Spanish origin...

Masriera

Josep Masriera Vidal opened his first workshop on...

Massin, Oscar

Born in Liège in Belgium in 1829, Oscar...

Mauboussin

Mauboussin’s story begins in 1827 when a gentleman...

Meister

Meister was founded in 1881 and remains a...

Mellerio

The Mellerio family traces its history in the...

Membre, Ernest

Ernest Membré was a French jeweller who specialised...

Mikimoto

"My dream is to adorn the necks of...

Munsteiner, Bernd

Bernd Munsteiner won his first gold medal in...

Nardi

"My love for this city of water and...

Nielsen, Evald

“It is wonderful to do work which it...

Ostertag

Melchior Siegfried Arnold Ostertag (1883-1940), known as Arnold,...

Ostier Inc.

The New York jewellery firm Ostier was founded...

Paltscho

The firm of Paltscho was founded in Vienna...

Patek Philippe

Patek Philippe, arguably the best known and most...

Peretti, Elsa

“The day Elsa Peretti became a part of...

Péry et Cie

The historic jewellery workshop of A. Péry et...

Picasso, Paloma

“Jewellery is eternal. Fashion is the moment, but...

Picq, Henri

The Parisian workshop of Henri Picq, a name...

Pierret, Ernesto

Ernesto Pierret was born in Paris in 1824...

Poiray

The Maison Poiray was founded in 1975 by...

Ramsden, Omar

Omar Ramsden was born in Sheffield in 1873,...

Rood, S J

The firm of S.J. Rood was founded in...

Rowlands & Frazer

Rowlands & Frazer were a jewellers and silversmiths...

Rubel Frères

The names of Jean and Robert Rubel are...

Ruser, William

Best known for his whimsical sculptural jewels created...

Sandoz, Gustave

The Maison Gustave Sanzdoz was a family affair...

Saunders and Shepherd

Saunders and Shepherd is a firm of manufacturing...

Schlumberger, Jean

“I want to capture the irregularities of the...

Seaman Schepps

Seaman Schepps (1881-1972) was born in Manhattan and...

Sheffield & Co.

Sheffield & Co. was established in Alexandria, Egypt...

Shreve & Co.

George Coates Shreve and Samuel S. Shreve travelled...

Sonwai

Sonwai is the artist name of Verma Nequatewa,...

Starr, Theodore B

Theodore B. Starr (1837 – 1907) began his...

Sterlé, Pierre

Pierre Sterlé was still a young boy when...

Storr & Mortimer

The firm of Storr & Mortimer was formed...

Suzuki, Hiroshi

“Once I sense something creative, there is no...

Templier

The renowned Art Deco jeweller Raymond Templier (1891...

Tétard Frères

Edmond Tétard took over the business of the...

Thomas, David

“I like the scale of jewellery, I like...

Tiffany

In 1837 an ambitious young man called Charles...

Tillander

The firm of A. Tillander was established by...

Trabert & Hoeffer Mauboussin

The somewhat unlikely alliance between the venerable French...

Treskow, Elisabeth

The jeweller and silversmith Elisabeth Treskow was born...

Udall & Ballou

According to one of their 1930’s adverts…. “Fabrics...

Van Cleef & Arpels

On June 16th 1906 Van Cleef & Arpels opened...

Vassort, André

Little is known about the French jeweller André...

Verdura, Fulco di

“Fulco’s references to nature, culture and religion keep...

Verger Frères

Widely known as the jeweller’s jeweller, Verger created...

Vever

Undoubtedly best known for their Art Nouveau jewels,...

Watherston & Son

James Henderson Watherston and his son Edward James...

Webb, David

"I had a tremendous feeling for art in...

Weingrill

Carlo Weingrill set up his goldsmith workshop in...

Wièse

Jules Wièse is regarded as one of the...

Winston, Harry

“Jewels are more than my love and my...

Wolfe & Co. E

The fine jewellery manufacturing business known today as...

Wolfers

The Wolfers family had long been involved in...

Wolfers, Philippe

Philippe Wolfers was the son of gold and...

Yard, Raymond

“Mr Yard’s impeccable taste helped set the standard...

Zolotas

The Greek firm of Zolotas was founded in...