Legend has it that Coco Chanel first discovered her love for elegant camellia blossoms when, as a teenager, she attended a live performance of Alexandre Dumas’ The Lady of the Camellias featuring Sarah Bernhardt in the leading role. In 1913, Chanel was photographed on the beach at Étretat, France with a white camellia fastened to her waistband. From that point onward she continued to adorn herself with silk versions of the flower and the motif began appearing everywhere, from the screens in her Paris shop to the chandelier in her Paris apartment.
Camellias are an elegant, symmetrical, and timeless flower that symbolizes longevity and faithfulness in the East and desire, passion, and refinement in the West. Chanel has reinvented the camellia since the 1920s in a variety of materials, and it has evolved into a motif synonymous with the maison. From diamond-encrusted jewelry to engraved jacket buttons, Coco’s favorite flower is incorporated into many of Chanel’s creations, lending them a personal touch.
Auction Results Chanel
