Vintage Charles Christofle Silver Letter Opener

This silver-plated letter opener makes opening mail an elegant affair. Bearing the profile of Charles Christofle, founder of the brand, it is the perfect gift from brand affciandos. Vintage item sourced from France. Wear consistent with age and imperfections should be seen as expected and character-adding. 

Charles Christofle founded the company that bears his name in 1830. Originally a jeweler, he bought the patents silver plating and electrolytic gilding of gold in 1842. As a goldsmith, he transformed ceremonial items and everyday objects: from jewelry to cutlery, gold smithery to sculptures, and decorative objects to tableware. This is how silver came to be an integral player in art of living today.

Charles Christofle was born in Paris in 1805 amongst small industrialists specializing in the manufacturing of buttons. The only boy in a family of four, he apprenticed with his brother-in-law Hughes Calmette, a manufacturer of "provincial" copper jewelry in 1821. He took over the business 10 years later and in 1832 deposited his master's mark at the Garantie de Paris for "adornment". He developed his factory by positioning it towards export jewelry made of precious metal. The following year, he married Anne Henriette Bouilhet (1819 -1839) with whom he had two children, a daughter Marie Rose (1836-1918) and a son Paul (1838 -1907).