The name Baccarat first caught people’s attention through the luxurious perfume bottles of Dior and Guerlain for women, as well as the cognac bottles for Hennessy Richard.
It exudes the ultimate visual impact, epitomizing “luxury.” This is none other than Baccarat, the world’s top crystal brand. However, unlike many luxury brands, “Baccarat” is not the name of the founder but the name of a small town. Before the 18th century, glass workshops were monopolized by the royal court, and factory construction required royal permission. In 1765, in an effort to revive the post-war regional economy, Louis XV allowed the archbishop of Metz, Louis de Montmorency-Lava, to establish the first non-royal glass furnace in Baccarat, in the eastern part of France’s Lorraine. This was the precursor to the current Baccarat factory, the only one of its kind in the world.
In 1816, Belgian industrialist Aime-Gabriel d’Artigues purchased the glass factory and named it Baccarat, transforming it into a producer of crystal products. To this day, all Baccarat crystal worldwide comes from this factory.
In the same year, the French Republic collapsed with the exile of Napoleon, and the simple imperial style drew the dissatisfaction of the French Restoration Society, who believed that for necessary etiquette and dignity, everything in life had to be magnificent. Influenced by the market trend, Baccarat introduced fine sand from Belgium and technology from England to produce lead glass. In 1823, it began participating in world industrial exhibitions to promote the brand and successfully caught the attention of King Louis XVIII, receiving its first royal commission: a set of crystal cups for him. In 1828, King Charles X visited the factory and received a gift set of tea utensils, a pair of vases, and a set of kettle and cups. After this, Baccarat became the exclusive supplier of crystal dinnerware for the Tuileries Palace, truly establishing itself as a royal brand.
Since its inception, Baccarat’s apprenticeship program has started at the age of 16, with each apprentice working with a master craftsman for at least 6 to 7 years. Adhering to this top-level craftsmanship, Baccarat has served one royal family after another. In 1840, Emperor Louis Philippe of the French Orleans dynasty ordered a ceremonial chalice with the royal monogram from Baccarat. This chalice became the prototype for the renowned “Harcourt” series.
In 1841, Baccarat used small flat cuts on a wide hexagonal shape to create a dazzling and dramatic light refraction, naming it “Harcourt.” As a representative masterpiece of Baccarat’s dreamlike crystal, this series quickly sold out upon its release. In 1851, it caught the attention of Napoleon III and appeared on the tableware list at the Élysée Palace. Subsequently, Baccarat created crystal chandeliers and other items for Napoleon III and IV.
Before Baccarat, crystal only had one option: transparency. It was through Baccarat’s research that they discovered a formula that could change the color of crystal without increasing the lead content, while maintaining a high refractive index. This made crystal a true vessel of beauty. Throughout the 19th century, Baccarat’s history was written in one royal commission after another, truly becoming “crystal for kings and nobles.” In 1906, an order from Tsar Nicholas II pushed Baccarat crystal glasses to new heights. In the late 19th century, one of Baccarat’s three melting furnaces belonged to the Russian royal family. This time, the Tsar demanded all-color wine glasses with extraordinary luxury. The result was an extraordinary set of cups named after the king, made exclusively by MOF (Best Craftsman of France): the Tsar’s Cup.
The series consisted of 6 colors, with red reserved for members of the Romanov royal family and blue as an option for entertaining political dignitaries. To this day, the “Tsar’s Cup” series remains an important part of special orders placed by connoisseurs around the world.
As the economy developed, the “age of advertising” arrived, and Baccarat in the 20th century took a different approach by entering into collaborations. From 1867 to 1906, Baccarat delivered over 4,000 perfume bottles each year.
Therefore, in 1949, Baccarat’s first collaboration was with the renowned brand Dior, creating a perfume bottle for the classic fragrance Miss Dior called “Dioranma.” Based on the classical double-handled perfume bottle, it featured the blue, white, and red colors of the French flag, depicted with gilded patterns. The limited edition Miss Dior perfume sold out quickly.
This was undoubtedly a highly successful marketing case, as Baccarat turned the “business of a small group of nobles” into “the business of the masses.” For the 250th anniversary of the establishment of the Baccarat brand, they once again collaborated with Dior, this time working on J’adore. They reinterpreted the design of the slender Masai neck and created a crystal bottle that refracts a mysterious halo around the amber-colored liquid. Since then, Guerlain and Hennessy have also become partners of Baccarat, and they have opened exclusive brand hotels and museums, redefining the interpretation of “crystal” for the world.
