Mauboussin First Lady Maxi Watch 18K Gold Diamond Crocodile, 1985

During the roaring ’20s, Paris saw a confluence of wealthy and creative people flock to the city from all over the world, like artists, writers, princes and singers. Designer Georges Mauboussin understood the vibrant and cosmopolitan spirit of the time, and at the jewelry house he would propel to fame, Mauboussin, he became an iconic creator of Art Deco jewelry, using jade, lapis lazuli, pearls and other precious materials imported from around the globe.

The Mauboussin brand owes its success to expertise with precious metals and gems and its illustrious clientele. The fine jewelry house, originally founded in Paris in 1827 as the Maison Noury, is known for being highly experimental with mountings for diamonds, finding inspiration in fields like aeronautics (Georges’s son Pierre Mauboussin got into the airplane engineering business in the late 1920s) and filing patents for many of its inventions.

This modern sensibility drew royal clients from the Middle East and Egypt (Queen Nazli owned several dazzling pieces), as well as Hollywood stars like Marlene Dietrich and Charlie Chaplin. However, its most significant royal relationship was with the stylish maharaja of Indore, Yashwant Rao Holkar II, who designated Mauboussin as his official purveyor in 1933. One of the maison’s legendary pieces for the maharaja is a necklace that uses two of the world’s most beautiful diamonds, the Indore Pears, part of the maharaja’s collection.

In its long history, Mauboussin has found creative and beautiful ways to incorporate the tastes of the time into its luxury jewelry, responding to movements like Cubism as well as crises like the Great Depression when it shifted to more affordable pieces that would be available to a larger audience. (From 1936 to 1953, Mauboussin also partnered with Trabert Hoeffer to stay afloat following the Wall Street crash.) In the 1990s, the company expanded into perfume and watches. Galeries Lafayette acquired a majority stake in the company in 2019 with the jeweler continuing to showcase a dedication to its French heritage with an international approach to design.

Find a collection of vintage Mauboussin rings, necklaces and other jewelry on 1stDibs.