Adapting to the changing silver market, and predictions for its future

legendary luxury jeweller and watchmaker.
People would bring pieces to him from all over
the world – both watches and jewels – which he
would study for the telltale Cartier marks and
craftsmanship, before giving a thumbs up or
thumbs down verdict.
His skill in the field also attracted
less desirable visitors. Bellessort talks of
“professional fakers [coming] from New York
and elsewhere, bringing what they had made,
just to see if I could spot the fake!”
When asked to identify the quality that has
allowed him to achieve success in his work,
Bellessort replies: “Having ‘the eye’.” This
is not something that is acquired easily, and
he believes it is the single most important
attribute that has allowed him to flourish in
the jewellery trade. He harks back once again
to his childhood, saying: “I have been training
my eye constantly since I was 12; pushing
myself all the time. I believe that one must
train from such an early age to fully develop
the talent.
“Once you’ve got the eye you can see the
edge of the cut of the stone and then you can
see further details in the manufacturing and
making of the piece. And once you see this
you understand how a piece should be worn.
Being able to really see in this way gives me a
huge advantage in selling, authenticating and
designing jewellery.”
Not surprisingly this time spent at Tiffany
and Cartier brought Bellessort into contact
with some of the most elegant jewellery ever
made; “amazing pieces, mostly from the 1920s,
30s and 40s,” routinely made their way into his
offices. His eyes grow misty when asked about
some of the precious stones that have passed
through his hands: “I am privileged... I have
seen some amazing pieces – pearls, diamonds,
sapphires and rubies from all over the world.
At Cartier we would get emeralds from the
17 th century, which we would then remount.”
Bellessort draws attention to one particular
piece, saying: “At the moment I’ve got a
necklace, which is a Mughal piece – one from
about 1640. It belonged to Shah Jahan, the
legendary builder of the Taj Mahal.” Bellessort’s
research indicates that the necklace is likely to
have hung around the neck of the man who
ruled the Mughal Empire during its golden age.
Though he enjoyed his time at Cartier and
other companies, Bellessort always harboured
a desire to break free and create a brand of his
own. These urges towards independence were
fine-tuned as he found himself “always noticing
people in the street, seeing the jewellery they
were wearing, and thinking: ‘If you changed
that just a little bit, it would work.’”
Deciding that he had the touch required
to correct these errors in style, he set about
planning his own range of jewellery. The result,
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SET IN STONE 31
“I am
privileged...
I have seen
some amazing
pieces – pearls,
diamonds,
sapphires and
rubies from all
over the world”