Bulgari has enchanted tastemakers with its exquisite pieces for 130 years, establishing a glamorous heritage and creating a legacy of true luxury.
Elizabeth Taylor became an ardent fan of Bulgari while filming in Rome in the early 1960s. She even had a private room at the Via Condotti boutique to try on the jewels.
Since 1884, the House of Bulgari has thrilled the beau monde with its style and elegance. This year, as the Italian brand celebrates its 130th anniversary, it embarks on a series of projects that recount its rich past with a visionary eye to the future.
As part of its anniversary celebration, Bulgari hosted a multiday gala event in Rome that included the unveiling of the newly refurbished flagship boutique, the announcement of its cultural support of the city of Rome, and—the pièce de résistance—a tour of the brand’s gemstone room and craftsmanship laboratory.
Bulgari is one of the largest purchasers of top-quality colored gemstones in the world. At any given time, the company’s workshops have thousands of jewels on the premises as it designs statement pieces and collections. In a single well-lit room, with walls lined in sketches and colorful concepts for necklaces, brooches, bracelets, earrings, and rings, was a table brimming with rubies, emeralds, sapphires, amethysts, citrines, and other gems. Seeing that—even for someone who has reported on jewelry for decades—made me feel like the proverbial kid in a candy store.
“Bulgari is known for its use of big stones and for combining colors,” says Lucia Silvestri, Bulgari’s creative director. “When most houses were creating single-color gemstone necklaces and brooches, we were mixing gems and colors for artful presentations that left people breathless. It is very important for us to bring together rare stones with semiprecious stones of all colors for dramatic appeal. That is our signature.”
Artful Origins
Almost since its inception, Bulgari’s aesthetic has been about color, texture, and romantic appeal. That may well be due to the brand’s Greek ancestral roots that date back to the early 1800s, when the Voulgaris family of silversmiths created Byzantine-style works of art. Residing in a small village in the Pindus mountain range, the family was adept at making unique silver belts, buckles, earrings, and sword sheaths. They passed the art form from generation to generation, eventually landing with the creative scion Sotirio Voulgaris, who was also an astute entrepreneur. Sotirio relocated to Italy and established his first jewelry shop in Rome in 1884. As the business flourished, he Italianized his name and opened his second Bulgari store, and the first on Via Condotti, in 1894. (It would be another decade before a third boutique was established at the current landmark address, Via Condotti, number 10, at the foot of the entrancing Spanish Steps.)
Throughout the ensuing century, the family-owned and -operated brand thrived. Family members contributed different aspects to the business: talent for design, expertise in precious gemstone selection, and business acumen. Together they built an empire based on vivid and evocative jewelry designs that were so enthralling and intriguing that they quickly caught the eyes of socialites and celebrities, of politicians and aristocrats. The glamorous Clare Boothe Luce—who, posted in Italy, was the first American woman to hold a major ambassadorship—was particularly fond of the brand, as were Sophia Loren, Jayne Mansfield, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor.
Bulgari creations have also captivated leading men. Celebrities such as Richard Burton, Eddie Fisher, and Kirk Douglas frequented the store in search of perfect gifts for their beloveds. American artist Andy Warhol, ever obsessed with color and design, never missed a chance to visit the store when in Rome, calling Bulgari the “best exhibition of contemporary art.” Today Bulgari can be seen on the wrists of such boldfacers as Naomi Watts, Kate Hudson, Julia Roberts, and Jessica Lange.
The façade of Bulgari on Via Condotti in the 1920s.
Evolution Of Style
Pinpointing Bulgari’s appeal is easy: The brand has established an inimitable style that is timeless. The original intricate Byzantine designs paved the way for the lavish and elegant Art Deco styles of the 1920s, when pendants, brooches, tiaras, and wristwatches came into popularity. Bulgari’s prominent use of large diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires in its designs for these pieces became a signature of the brand.
Stunning floral motifs that brought together multiple colored gemstones in one piece stole the limelight in the 1940s, ’50s, and ’60s. It was a time of great innovation for Bulgari. In the decades to come, the brand developed new methods of gemstone carving and setting, metalworking, and gold engraving that brought Bulgari world renown for presenting jewelry as art.
The next step for the brand was to create jewelry not just for special occasions but also to wear all day, while maintaining Bulgari’s elevated style. This evolution was manifested in some of the brand’s most iconic collections, developed in the latter half of the 20th century: Parentesi (using straight and curved interlocking elements); Bulgari Bulgari (incorporating the brand name into the designs); Tubogas (malleable gold coil designs); and Serpenti (the beloved serpent collection).
“We always strive for dynamic designs that offer color and creativity, and top-quality craftsmanship,” Silvestri says. Whether it is one of the brand’s unique million-dollar offerings or a $1,000 production, every piece results from expert handcraftsmanship. Bulgari has an elaborate team of designers and an equally complex manufacturing process, with every step being closely monitored by the company for quality control.
“We hire our craftsmen right out of school, and then train them ourselves to learn the Bulgari style,” says Massimo Di Valentini, high jewelry internal workshop manager. “In addition to their schooling, it takes about seven to eight years to learn our style and implement our standards.”
Timeless Temptations
With its rich roots firmly in mind and in celebration of its 130th anniversary, Bulgari releases an exquisite Anniversary collection inspired by Rome and offering global appeal. The collection, now in Bulgari boutiques, includes a high-jewelry Serpenti necklace, extraordinary special editions, a re-edition of the B.zero1 ring, precision timepieces, a new fragrance, and accessories embellished with gemstones.
The one-of-a-kind Ultimate Temptation necklace reinterprets the iconic snake motif. It is set with more than 60 carats of fancy-shaped diamonds in a mosaic pattern that is a deft blend of superlative design and craftsmanship. Exactly 70 diamonds trace a path along the snake’s tail, leading to a spectacular 12.16-carat diamond drop.
Further highlighting this motif, Bulgari releases three elegant diamond Serpenti pendants on a necklace that resembles scales. Each Serpenti pendant is clad in diamond pavé and features a burst of color via a fancy-cut mandarin garnet, rubellite, or emerald center drop. The mandarin garnet is a 30.97-carat pear cut rare stone; the 13.86-carat rubellite is cut in a geometric shape; the 23.75-carat emerald swings freely in a drop cut that respects the stone’s natural shape.
On a more approachable level, Bulgari has also created a pink gold and bronzed ceramic B.zero1 Roma ring. The piece merges the Bulgari Roma logo with a Tubogas inspiration, symbolizing the brand’s respect for its Roman origins and its visionary look to the future.
Another major endeavor to honor its anniversary was Bulgari’s renovation of its boutique at Via Condotti 10, for which the brand hired acclaimed architect Peter Marino. The redesign—with rich woods, Italian marble, and a new watch room—will serve as the inspiration for all future Bulgari boutique openings and updates. Marino even paid close attention to a small secret room with sliding doors that was the “salottino Taylor,” where Elizabeth Taylor often spent time during her work in Rome on the famous film epic Cleopatra. The salon was reachable through a secret door from a private courtyard. While it has been closed for decades, Marino brought it back to service, ready for today’s VIPs.
“The renovations in the boutique clearly make it a store for the future,” says Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of Bulgari worldwide. “[Marino’s] creativity in combining the historic aspects of the building with timeless woods, paints, and other touches makes it something we can emulate in future boutiques.”
Additionally, in an effort to pay homage to the Eternal City, from which the brand continually draws inspiration, Bulgari has become the sole financier of the restoration of the famed Spanish Steps—just minutes away from the store and the focal point of the celebrated street.