A Chaumet morganite and diamond ring.

Joseph Chaumet began his career at fifteen, in Bordeaux. Upon moving to Paris he married the daughter of Prospel Morel 1875. Mr Morel had a jewellery business with a history of the firm already started in Paris in the 1780's with the jeweller Marie-Etienne Nitot, famous for his astonishing pieces made for Napoleon I.

1n 1889 Joseph Chaumet took control of the business of his father-in-law and changed the name to his own. A branch opened in London in 1905 and in 1907, Chaumet moved to premises at Place Vendôme. The firm thrived in the 1920's and a new shop was opened in New York. During the next two generations, the Chaumet family exercised tight control over each item that bore the Chaumet signature, guaranteeing original design and exquisite jewellery.