The Jewels of the Romanovs: Family and Court

Stefano Papi's richly illustrated survey traces the jewellery of the Romanov dynasty from the eighteenth century through to the revolution and its aftermath. Drawing on Russian museum archives and private collections, the book documents both the imperial commissions and the personal jewels of individual family members.

The later chapters cover the dispersal of Romanov jewels after 1917, when stones and finished pieces entered the international market through Soviet state sales and private channels. Cartier, along with other leading houses, played a role in this secondary market, acquiring and resetting Romanov stones for a new generation of clients.

Relevance to The Cartiers

The Romanov connection touches several strands of the Cartier story: the pre-revolutionary Russian client base (including Princess Zinaida Yusupova and Grand Duchess Vladimir), the post-1917 dispersal that flooded the market with imperial stones, and the broader geopolitical upheaval that reshaped the luxury trade in the interwar period.