June 8, 2021: A brand that was given a royal seal of approval by King Louis XV in 1767, Saint-Louis crystal is a permanent fixture in elite dining rooms, imperial palaces and presidential banquets around the world. Staying true to its opulent character, this celebrated brand has unveiled a new series of crystal glassware—the Queens Hall Collection.
Born from a collaboration between Saint-Louis and the Palace of Versailles, the Queens Hall Collection includes four crystal stemmed glasses with patterns inspired by the decorations of Versailles in homage to four emblematic sovereigns: Maria Theresa of Austria, Marie Leszczynska, Marie Antoinette of Austria and Maria Amelia of Bourbon Siciles. These low-stemmed glasses offer optimal ergonomics.
The last queen to the French people, Maria Amelia distinguished herself through her commitment to charity. She reigned over the French people at the side of Louis Philippe, and opened a museum with him in the Palace of Versailles. The côtes plates (flat cuts) embellishing the Maria Amelia glass are reminiscent of knights’ helmets, linking the collection to the Crusades Hall in the Palace’s Historic Galleries, which were inaugurated by this queen.
Maria Theresa of Austria was an Infanta of Spain, the “Empire on which the sun never sets.” She would become Queen of France at the side of Louis XIV, bringing the Spanish court’s joy and flair for life into the Palace of Versailles. The sun like crown, outlined through bevelled cuts, harks back to these early days of Versailles, an era of splendour and celebration.
Marie Antoinette of Austria – a strong woman with a tragic destiny – inspired the artistic avant garde of her day. She reigned at the side of Louis XVI. Cut into her namesake glass are ears of wheat, reminiscent of the countryside – alluding to the queen’s taste for antiquity, and to the picking gardens she had planted at Versailles.
Queen Marie Leszczynska was a painter and a polyglot, and reigned alongside Louis XV. She strongly influenced the artistic life of her era, which was characterised by the Rocaille style. Bringing to mind the shells that are associated with the Rocaille style, the Marie Leszczynska glass motifs also evoke the fireworks from this period of delight and rejoicing.
The glasses are available in India through Emery Studio in New Delhi.
