Dynastie Cartier - Příběh nejslavnější klenotnické rodiny – Cartier Brickell Francesca (2025)

This book, with contents in Czech, traces the history of the world’s most famous jewellery dynasty across four generations, from revolutionary France during the Second Republic to the 1970s. Its rise was driven above all by the three Cartier brothers, whose motto was “Do not copy, create” and whose exceptional talent and dedication brought the family international renown more than a century ago. The visionary designer Louis created, among other things, the first Santos men’s wristwatch to help his pilot friend tell the time without taking his hands from the controls. The negotiator Pierre bought the company’s Manhattan headquarters on Fifth Avenue in exchange for a double pearl necklace, while the well-travelled Jacques, an expert in precious stones, secured access to the finest rubies, emeralds and sapphires, inspiring the celebrated tutti frutti style. Francesca Cartier Brickell, whose great-grandfather Jacques was the youngest of the three brothers, travelled around the world to investigate her family’s famous history and the hidden corners of the lives of her remarkable ancestors. Previously missing pieces reveal family secrets, dramatic romances, historical upheavals and many other stories. With scholarly passion, the author presents an engaging and detailed account of the fate of the company’s most famous jewels, including the Hope diamond, the Romanov emeralds and panther brooches, as well as the glamour of the aristocrats, wealthy entrepreneurs and fashion and film stars who proudly wore them, from Russian grand duchesses and Indian maharajas and their wives to Wallis Simpson, Coco Chanel and Elizabeth Taylor. Published in its original form in the year marking the bicentenary of the birth of dynasty founder Louis-François Cartier, this book is an epic of an age of splendour, seen through the eyes of an iconic family that played a significant part in creating its luxurious brilliance.