Saint-Louis Thistle Gold Barware

The Saint-Louis Thistle Gold Barware collection is among the most comprehensive formal barware ranges in the Saint-Louis portfolio: a highball, old fashioned glasses in two sizes, cylindrical tumblers in two sizes, a cocktail glass, a tasting glass, a square decanter, a wine decanter with handle, a water jug, a champagne bucket, a cocktail shaker, a caviar set, and a knife rest — all with Venetian stripes, bevel cuts, and the Thistle’s 24-karat gold frieze.

Each Thistle Gold piece passes through the hands of 25 artisans over 25 days. Ten glassblowers shape the mouth-blown form; 15 specialists then cut, engrave, and apply the gold decoration. The 24-karat gold frieze is painted by hand with a fine brush, then fired and polished with agate stone — a process that fixes the gold permanently to the engraved surface and gives it the depth and warmth that distinguishes genuine gilding from any substitute. The Venetian-style stripes and bevel cuts on the parison are formed and hand-cut separately, with each element of the decoration — stripes, cuts, frieze — added in sequence by different specialists.

Thistle was born in 1913, refined from the Chardon service created in 1909 for the Nancy Exposition at the height of Art Nouveau. Chardon — French for thistle, the emblem of Nancy — was presented with the city’s defiant motto: Qui s’y frotte s’y pique. Designer Louis Reyen perfected its lines and, in 1913, anglicized the name to Thistle in honor of the Franco-British Entente Cordiale. Every element of the design is a portrait of the flower itself: the basket-shaped base adorned with oval cuts evokes the thistle’s prickly stem; the conical bowl’s fine Venetian stripes mirror its delicate petals; the 24-karat gold frieze at rim and foot depicts its winding tendrils and sun-shaped flowers. Since then, Thistle Gold has graced the tables of royalty, heads of state, and presidential dinners on official occasions around the world. More than a century old, it remains the most complete and demanding service in the Saint-Louis portfolio. Established in 1586, Saint-Louis stands as Europe’s oldest crystal manufacturer, holding the title of Royal Cristallerie since 1781.