DAY 10: A Duel Over a Cigarette Case

Faberge enamel cigarette case, St.Petersburg 1890

Finally, a post about men's fashions.

Yes, women smoked cigarettes in the Gilded Age, and Consuelo Mandeville liked to flaunt her Cuban heritage by smoking cigars, but few women actually carried their own cigarettes--they relied on gentleman to proffer the vice, with a deft hand drawn from an inner coat pocket.

Women loved to give cigarette cases to the favorite men in their lives, because the precious objects were carried next to a man's heart. A gentleman could never own too many--different cases suited different moods, different times of day, different attire, even different love affairs. One reason the great Russian Court jeweler, Faberge, opened a shop in Bond Street during the Gilded Age is due to the fad for exchanging exquisite jeweled and enameled accessories, popularized by the royal sisters, Queen Alexandra and Czarina Minnie.

Which brings me to this extraordinary story of one case in particular. Diamonds and enamel the color of lapis lazuli, created by Faberge, it belonged to Bertie--Prince of Wales, and King Edward VII.

The case was a 1908 gift from Alice Keppel, Bertie's last mistress. (That's a potential book title, by the way--The Last Mistress.) 

According to notes from the Royal Collection, where the cigarette case is held, it's a consummate example of Faberge's Art Nouveau style. Of course. But what I notice is the ubiquitous symbol of the Gilded Age and in particular the Marlborough House Set--the ouroboros, or snake devouring its own tale. Recall the tattoo of the same symbol on Jennie's left wrist, and the constant serpent theme in the era's jewelry. The ouroboros was a symbol of eternity, spiritual renewal, or eternal love--something a mistress would want to express.

After Bertie's death in 1910, Queen Alexandra returned the cigarette case to Alice Keppel as a memento. Alice passed it back to Queen Mary in 1936, ensuring it remained in the Royal Collection.

I have to wonder...did the duel over this case--Alix banishing it from Buckingham Palace and Alice returning it--represent a tug-of-war over the importance of each woman in Bertie's life? 

Here, some other notable examples of that classic male accessory, the cigarette case.

Silver and enamel pictorial case,
4th Artel, Moscow, 1908

Silver, gold and sapphire gem case, 1901
Zodiac symbol of Sagittarius, by
Paulding Farnham, Tiffany & Co.

And a few more:

Faberge, 1905, Moscow
enamel, mother-of-pearl, gold, diamonds, rubies

enamel case, possibly Russian, 1905, courtesy Sotheby's

Faberge, parcel-gilt silver and champleve enamel,
St. Petersburg, 1895

John T. Curran, Tiffany & CO., 1893,
from the Chicago Columbian Exposition.
Sterling silver, enamel and nephrite

DAY 20: The Incidental Art of Parasol Handles

On Jennie's wedding day in Paris, April 15, 1874, she displayed two cherished gifts from her father, Leonard Jerome--a necklace of pearls, her only jewelry, and a gorgeous new Chantilly lace parasol.

Enamel, gold, tortoiseshell handle, Tiffany & Co., 1880s

We think of parasols as frippery items, confections of silk and lace designed to shield a lady's complexion. But these were also objects of art, less for their silk than the handles grasped in a lady's gloved fingers. Although the silk wore out, and was frequently changed for fresh trimmings at a parasol maker (like Dupuy, a fashionable establishment on the Rue de la Paix in Paris), the handles were cherished.







Jennie's gift from Leonard Jerome is described as fragile white frills, mounted on a tortoise-shell stick rimmed with gold. I'm guessing it was from Tiffany, where Leonard Jerome was known to frequently purchase gifts for ladies--because Tiffany, like most jewelers, was a principal crafter of parasol handles. Jennie's wedding gift may have resembled this one pictured at right.

Carved amber and jeweled silver-gilt
enamel mount, Faberge, workmaster
Andre Gorianov, 1900. Notice
the ouroboros serpent motif in diamonds.

Carved smoky quartz, gold, and enamel, Faberge,
workmaster Henrik Wigstrom, St. Petersburg, 1910

Another remarkable jeweler that fashioned glorious handles for both parasols and men's walking sticks was Faberge, the St. Petersburg firm of Russian Court jewelers best known for its extraordinary jeweled Easter eggs. The close ties between Princess Alix and her sister, Minnie--the Russian Czarina--meant the two royal families frequently exchanged gifts from Faberge. As a result, the items became so fashionable among upperclass Britons that in 1906 Faberge opened a London shop.

Carved nephrite and rose-cut diamond set flowers and gold rocaille,
Faberge, workmaster Michael Perchin, St. Petersburg, 1899

Of course, not every lady could afford such luxuries. But artful attention to a parasol's handle could be found in myriad places, and with spectacular results. Here, some varied examples of handles that have endured through time: 

carved ivory, by Jean-Pascal Francois Norest, 1859, V&A Museum

Rock crystal cabochon with reverse intaglio

Carved bird's claw in tortoiseshell, www.metmuseum.org

For more images from THAT CHURCHILL WOMAN, visit the  Pinterest board behind the novel.  

Parasol, Dupuy Paris, 1895-1890, www.metmuseum.org