Marie-Étienne Nitot (2 April 1750 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

– 9 September 1809) was a French jeweller, the official jeweller to the

Emperor Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, and the founder of the House of Chaumet.

History

Nitot's family was from

Château-Thierry Château-Thierry (; Picard: ''Catieu-Thierry'') is a French commune situated in the department of the Aisne, in the administrative region of Hauts-de-France, and in the historic Province of Champagne. The origin of the name of the town is u ...

, he himself was born in Paris on 2 April 1750. After being an apprentice to Aubert, court jeweller to Queen

Marie-Antoinette Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the wife of Louis XVI. Born Archd ...

, he moved to Paris in 1780. He survived the French Revolution and, in 1802, was appointed jeweller to Emperor Napoleon. With the help of his son François Regnault (1779–1853), Nitot created jewellery symbolizing the power that Napoleon wished to convey. These include the wedding jewels of Josephine de Beauharnais and

Marie Louise of Austria Marie Louise (Maria Ludovica Leopoldina Franziska Theresia Josepha Lucia; 12 December 1791 – 17 December 1847) was Duchess of Parma from 11 April 1814 until her death in 1847. She was Napoleon's second wife and as such Empress of the French a ...

. Nitot also designed Napoleon's coronation crown, his ceremonial sword and many other court ornaments. Marie-Étienne Nitot also played an active role with his son into re-assembling the Crown Treasury (''Trésor de la Couronne'') dismantled and spread apart during and after the French revolution, and were exclusive providers of precious stones to Napoleon. Marie-Étienne Nitot died in 1809. Napoleon appointed his son François Regnault Nitot to succeed him. François Regnault Nitot operated until the fall of the empire in 1815. Nitot then sold his business to his foreman, Jean-Baptiste Fossin (1786-1848).

Work

As official jeweller to Napoleon, Nitot made a number of significant pieces. He designed the

Napoleon Tiara The Napoleon Tiara was a papal tiara given to Pope Pius VII in June 1805 a few months after he presided at the coronation of Napoleon I. While lavishly decorated with jewels, it was deliberately too small and heavy to be worn and meant as an insu ...

and the Imperial Sword. The tiara designed for

Pope Pius VII Pope Pius VII (; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823) was head of the Catholic Church from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. He ruled the Papal States from June 1800 to 17 May 1809 and again ...

was presented to the Pope during Napoleon's coronation in 1804. He also designed the ''Cameo Tiara'' for Joséphine before 1810, but no portraits of Joséphine wearing the Cameo exists (only one portrait of her daughter Hortense wearing the Cameo and dating from 1812 exists). Marie-Étienne Nitot actually designed Joséphine's entire Emerald Parure that belongs today to the

Royal family of Norway Members of the Norwegian royal family are people related to Harald V, King Harald V of Norway or former Monarchy of Norway, Norwegian monarchs who are royals and who hold royal titles. The term does not include non-royal relatives. The current f ...

. The Leuchtenberg sapphire

parure A parure () is a set of various items of matching jewelry, which rose to popularity in early 19th-century Europe. Terminology A parure typically consists of a combination of a matching necklace, earrings, brooch, bracelet and often a diadem or t ...

, now part of the Swedish royal family jewel foundation, is attributed to Nitot. The sapphires are thought to have been a wedding gift from Napoleon to his step-daughter

Princess Augusta of Bavaria Princess Augusta of Bavaria, Duchess of Leuchtenberg () (21 June 1788 in Munich – 13 May 1851 in Strasbourg) was the second child and eldest daughter of Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria and Princess Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse-Darmstadt. ...

, Duchess of Leuchtenberg and then passed to the Swedish royal family with Queen Josephine. In addition to these creations, Nitot crafted the Napoleon Diamond Necklace around 1811–1812 to celebrate the birth of

Napoleon II Napoleon II (Napoléon François Joseph Charles Bonaparte; 20 March 181122 July 1832) was the disputed Emperor of the French for a few weeks in 1815. He was the son of Emperor Napoleon I and Empress Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma, Marie Louise, d ...

. The necklace, featuring 234 diamonds totaling approximately 263 carats, was gifted to Empress Marie-Louise and is now housed at the

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History The National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It has free admission and is open 364 days a year. With ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, D.C. Nitot also designed the Marie Louise Diadem in 1810 as part of a parure that included a necklace, earrings, a comb, and a belt buckle, all set with emeralds and diamonds in silver and gold. The diadem contained 79 Colombian emeralds and 1,006 diamonds. While the necklace and earrings are now in the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

, the diadem, with its emeralds replaced by Persian turquoise in the 1950s, is housed at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

Gallery

File:Marie Louise Diadem.jpg, Marie Louise Diadem by Francois Regnault Nitot. File:Napoleon Diamond Necklace.jpg, Napoleon Diamond Necklace. File:Royal Wedding Stockholm 2010-Slottsbacken-07 edit.jpg, Cameo tiara, now in the Swedish Royal Family. File:Sílvia da Suécia (meio corpo).jpg, Queen Silvia wearing the Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure.

References

1750 births 1809 deaths 18th-century French businesspeople 19th-century French businesspeople Material culture of royal courts 19th-century French jewellers 18th-century jewellers {{France-business-bio-stub