Saint Louis Launch Galerie Royale
In 1767, in Versailles, Louis XV signed the patent letter that would appoint Cristalleries Saint-Louis as royal manufacturer. This precious document, which to this day is kept in the Saint-Louis archives, bears witness to the ties between the two places, renewed through the ages and through the pieces. Every day, Saint-Louis reinterprets an age-old art of hosting, in a contemporary and joyful way. The Cristallerie thus harks back to the purpose of the Palace of Versailles, both a witness to the history of France and a palace for celebration.
Launched in 2019, the Galerie Royale collection, including the Queens’ Hall & Kings’ Hall collections, pays tribute to four royal couples who left their enduring legacy on the Palace of Versailles through both their lives and their style. The latest pieces in the Galerie Royale collection, the crystal champagne flutes epitomise all the sumptuousness of a royal gathering, inviting four queens and their regal heritage to come together around a single table.
In 1767, Louis XV forged an unwavering bond between the court of Versailles and Saint-Louis, rendering it the royal Manufacture, forever bound to the Palace. The site of extravagant celebrations and French whimsy, the walls of Versailles still echo with the candescent memory of four royal couples. With four tumblers dedicated to the kings and four stem glasses in honour of the queens, the only thing missing from the Saint-Louis table is the sparkling jubilation of the most festive of wines.
Light, lithe and set on a short cut glass stem, the champagne flutes have been designed with a natural and graceful poise. Each one looks back onto a past piece tied to a queen whose initials have been engraved under the stem.
For the Infanta Maria Theresa of Spain (MT), a bevelled solar crown evokes the exceptional festivities imbued with Spanish splendour, held at Versailles by Louis XIV for the first time.
Next is Marie Leszczyńska (ML), patron of the arts, of high culture and unfailing wit. Alongside her royal consort, Louis XV of France, she played a significant role in the promotion of Rococo. The finely faceted bevels of this flute appear to spring forth from the glass and pay tribute to the Bien-Aimé, or the “Beloved”, the pseudonym of her consort.
Marie-Antoinette (MA) requires no introduction. Her passion for ancient history was matched only by her deep love of nature. The exquisitely cut grooves on her flute suggest the sensibility of this queen’s refined taste and aesthetic approach to life.
Finally, Marie-Amélie de Bourbon (MAM), Queen of Louis-Philippe, the King of France, devoted her life to charitable causes. Her devotion is illustrated by the fluted grooves, which echo the Neo-Medieval style of the period.
