Chanel Paris-Bombay Métiers d'Art Matryoshka Doll Minaudière Black Resin Gold Hardware 2012

Chanel Paris-Bombay Métiers d'Art Matryoshka Doll Minaudière Black Resin Gold Hardware 2012

Matryoshka doll-form minaudière from Karl Lagerfeld's Paris-Bombay Métiers d'Art collection, shown December 6, 2011 at the Grand Palais. The Galerie Courbe was transformed into a Maharaja's banquet hall with a 50-metre feast table that doubled as the runway, a miniature Chanel-branded steam train running its length. Stella Tennant opened and closed the show alongside Lagerfeld ; he selected her for her resemblance to Lady Curzon, Vicereine of India circa 1900.

The doll takes the Russian matryoshka silhouette ; Chanel first introduced the form in the Paris-Moscow Métiers d'Art collection (Pre-Fall 2009) ; and dresses it in Indian ornamentation. The face is brushed gold-tone metal, hand-painted with black enamel eyes, a beauty mark, and burgundy lips. A single crystal bindi sits at the center of the forehead. The headpiece is a Maang Tikka construction: multiple draped chains in gold-tone and blackened metal, interwoven with pearl strands, secured by a white enamel camellia with a gold CC center at the crown.

The body is high-gloss black resin with a diamond-lattice pattern in white, crystals set at each intersection point. Three large faux pearl medallions in gold filigree settings run vertically down the center. A crystal-set CC logo sits at the neckline, functioning as the push-lock closure, with a burgundy silk tassel suspended below it. The gold-tone chain shoulder strap is interwoven with black leather. Resin interior.

Condition: 2 – Excellent
Collection: Métiers d'Art 2011/2012 ; Paris-Bombay
Designer: Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel
Color: Black / Gold
Material: Resin (Plexiglass), Enamel, Crystal, Faux Pearl
Hardware: Gold-Tone
Dimensions: Approx. 17 cm H × 9 cm W × 9 cm D (6.7" H × 3.5" W × 3.5" D)
Includes: Full set

JaneFinds Collector's Insight:
The Paris-Bombay collection was the ninth in Chanel's annual Métiers d'Art series, which showcases the work of the Paraffection subsidiary ateliers ; embroiderers (Lesage, Montex), button and ornament makers (Desrues), feather workers (Lemarié), milliners (Maison Michel), and shoemakers (Massaro). Lagerfeld drew from Coco Chanel's Spring/Summer 1939 collection, which featured sari-styled dresses and Indian-inspired jewelry, and from the visual culture of 19th-century British India. He openly noted he had never visited India, preferring imagination to direct reference. The matryoshka doll minaudière reprises the nesting-doll form from Paris-Moscow (2009) but replaces Russian folk detailing with Indian elements ; the Maang Tikka headpiece, bindi crystal, and filigree pearl settings. The multi-chain headpiece, enamel camellia, and CC metalwork are produced by Desrues; the pearl settings are characteristic of Goossens atelier techniques.

JaneFinds Market Insight:
Chanel novelty minaudières are produced in extremely limited quantities, distributed exclusively through VIP boutique allocation, and are not available through general retail channels. The Paris-Bombay doll appeared in smaller numbers than the earlier Paris-Moscow version. Condition concerns for resin minaudières of this vintage: surface scratching on the high-gloss body is cumulative and irreversible; crystals can loosen from lattice settings; the blackened chains in the headpiece can oxidize unevenly; and the silk tassel fibers can fray at the attachment point. At over a decade old, minor shelf wear on the resin base is consistent with age. Resin minaudières from the Lagerfeld era represent a distinct segment of the Chanel secondary market ; they are collected as set pieces rather than carried regularly.

👜 JaneFinds Condition Guide