The grand anniversary celebration started in the summer of 2023 by opening a luxury hotel in Rome, where the modest Greek silversmith Sotirio Bulgari laid the foundations for the famous jewellery house, while the watchmaking part of the company marked the occasion with a new models – Octo Finissimo Sketch
Maison Bulgari is celebrating 140 years of its empire that comprises jewellery, watchmaking, perfume, fashion and hotel components. These branches that were built by three generations of a single family for decades have conquered the world, but all roads have always led to – Rome.
When the talented Greek silversmith Sotirios Voulgaris – who later changed his name to Sotirio Bulgari to make it sound more Italian – opened his first shop at Rome’s Via Sistina in 1884, he sold silver ornaments to British tourists. He probably never dreamt that decades later, some of the most beautiful women on the planet would be wearing pieces named after his family, or that his sons Giorgio and Constantino and grandsons Nicolo and Paolo would create one of the most recognizable jewellery brands.
The name Bvlgari was first displayed on the entrance of a small fashion store at Via dei Condotti in 1934. Paying homage to the Latin alphabet which was used in ancient Rome, they replaced the letter ‘u’ with ‘v’ in some designs. Bulgari or Bvlgari – it really doesn’t matter, because both have been synonymous with top quality and luxury lifestyle for quite some time.
Their design is recognizable, their jewellery remarkable, their watches are some of the finest in the world, clearly drawing inspiration from monuments, architecture, symmetry and elegant geometric lines. Roman temple columns, emperor’s head on a coin, shades of yellow gold that blend with diamonds on flower petals, coils, and a number of colourful gems reminiscent of Pop Art – all of this is Bulgari.
Few famous women in the world have loved their jewels so passionately and have worn them so effortlessly as Elizabeth Taylor did. She was the owner of the largest private collection of jewellery in the USA, full of one-of-a-kind pieces. Some were gifts from the men she loved, while others she bought herself.
She discovered Bulgari while filming ‘Cleopatra’ in Rome, and her film partner, and soon to be husband, Richard Burton, quickly realised what he could do to solidify their relationship. As the filming of the historical epic drew to a close, the acting icon shared with the press that ‘undeniably one of the biggest advantages to filming Cleopatra in Rome was Bulgari’s shop.’
After the actress passed away, Christie’s held a sale of Taylor’s private collection in 2011, setting records as the most valuable sale of jewellery in auction history – worth nearly $116 million. This included a pair of emerald and diamond earrings, a gift from Burton that she wore to the 1962 premiere of Lawrence of Arabia in Paris, as well as during her meeting with Queen Elizabeth in Washington in 1976.
The Maison re-acquired nine pieces for its Bulgari Heritage Collection that it puts on display wholly or partly on special occasions around the globe. One such occasion was this year’s BAFTA Film Awards, which is only the beginning of the grand anniversary celebration.
The love affair with the film industry that started in the 1950s and 1960s, when Rome was described as ‘Hollywood on the Tiber’, is still ongoing.
Bulgari jewels have shined in around 50 movies, worn by actresses such as Ingrid Bergman, Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Anita Ekberg and Gina Lollobrigida. Later on, they were seen on Sharon Stone in ‘Casino’, Madonna in ‘Evita’; Al Pacino and Val Kilmer wear Bulgari watches in ‘Heat’, as does Robert Downey Jr. in ‘Ironman’. The new brand ambassador Zendaya shined in Bulgari at the premiere of the blockbuster ‘Dune 2’.
The Bulgari brothers realised in the 1970s that women were going to be their best customers, so that’s who they focused on when it comes to innovations and designing jewellery that can be worn day to night. All of these desires were combined in modular jewellery designed in the 1980s and 1990s, decorated with a wide range of precious stones, from corals and hematites to diamonds.
As shiny and colourful as they were, they were no match for the innovative technical design of the collections Serpenti, Monete, Diva, Tubogas, Parentesi and B.Zero 1.
The Serpenti and Tubogas watches are prime example of how well watchmaking, jewellery making and haute couture can be combined. As the emblem of wisdom, rebirth and vitality, the serpent has been a motif seen on Bulgari watches and jewellery since the late 1940s. The movement is always in the snake’s head, while the body, which is the strap, is made in all versions you can imagine: yellow gold, stainless steel, with or without gems, up to the Tubogas version.
The flexible Tubogas band, inspired by tubes that were used for transporting pressurised gas in the 1920s, is mage using a technique that requires no soldering. Regardless of material, it fits every woman’s wrist perfectly, which is why it became one of the brand’s trademarks a long time ago. The same goes for the Parentesi collection, inspired by Roman pavements, or rather the travertine junctions used to link the stone blocks.
Even though Bulgari sticks to its history when it comes to design and the craftsmanship of making watches and jewellery, the Maison’s vast heritage is being constantly upgraded, giving a new dimension to luxury. The best example of this is the Octo Finissimo Ultra men’s watch, the second thinnest watch in the world. It’s just 1.80mm thin (the thinnest one was made by Richard Mille, 1.75 mm thin).
The Octo has a QR code to connect the watch with an NFT attached to it. Only ten titanium models were made, priced at €400,000. Pushing boundaries beyond the traditional craft methods of Bulgari’s master craftsmen, this piece is a result of pure digital modelling. New generations of high-end customers love it, as does the watchmaking profession, which regularly presents Bulgari with awards.
Last year, the one-of-a-kind watch Serpenti Misteriosi Cleopatra won the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Geneve in the Jewellery Watch category. Jean-Christophe Babin, Bulgari CEO, truly had a reason to celebrate: the company won ten awards for excellence in ten years.
The big anniversary will be marked by a limited edition of the Octo Finissimo Sketch, with three new models. A total of 400 pieces with dials based on sketches by Bulgari’s designer, Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, have already been pre-ordered.
Bulgari Hotels & Resorts are a special story. There are nine: in Milan, London, Beijing, Tokyo, Shanghai, Dubai, Paris, Rome and Bali, while Los Angeles, Miami and the Maldives are in the works for next year. All locations are prestigious, embodying contemporary Italian architecture brought to life by Milan-based architects Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel.
The approach to interior design and service is the same in all hotels: rooted in local tradition up to the smallest detail, boldly showcasing unique Italian design, offering lush spa zones in marble and onyx, and serving haute Italian cuisine at restaurants.
Merely eight months after the Tokyo hotel was opened last year, the restaurant headed by chef Niko Romito got a Michelin star. The Bulgari Hotel Roma was opened last summer at Piazza Augusto Imperatore and it is home to 114 rooms and suites. The biggest one has 300m2 of space.
600 guests attended the party, and, as expected, film and music stars shined in Bulgari pieces, and one that truly stood out was the Augustus emerald Monete Sautoir, embellished with over 600 carats of emerald beads.
Bulgari Hotels & Resort are owned by Marriott International, unlike the jewellery brand that was sold in 2011 by Sotiri’s grandsons, brothers Paolo and Nicola, for €3.7 billion to the French conglomerate LVMH.
The heirs of modest Sotiri got out of the business, but they still attract attention. His grandson Nicola, a passionate collector of vintage cars (83), whose net worth was estimated by Forbes to be $2 billion, was found guilty of insider trading on LVMH shares last year in Paris and handed a nine-month suspended jail sentence. His asset management firm Tara has to pay a fine of €5.5 million and he himself €1.2 million. On the other hand, the daughters from his first marriage have been waging a legal battle for the $129 million trust fund left to them by their late mother Ana.
Still, the blemishes on the family name can’t overshadow the company’s success and the permanent mark it has left on the world of luxury.
Text Dubravka Tomeković Aralica
Photos Bulgari Archive, Antonio Barrella, Tommy Picone & @AMPAS / Long Photography, Kyusung Gong
