 Tiffany
Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) is a jewelry
and silverware company founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany and John
B. Young in New York City in 1837. Tiffany & Co has since opened stores
in major cities all over the world.
Charles Lewis Tiffany, founder of
Tiffany & Co., was dubbed "the King of Diamonds" by New York
City newspapers. In the spring of 1887, Tiffany bought the French Crown
Jewels.
Tiffany designs were worn by such
famous families as the Astors, the Vanderbilts, and the Morgans.
Athletes, Hollywood stars, and even European royalty adored these
diamonds. Museums valued the Tiffany designs, which ranged from the Art
Nouveau period to Art Deco to today's modern styles. Today, the
128.54-carat Fancy Yellow Tiffany Diamond is on display in the
New York City flagship store.
Tiffany's in popular culture
The jewelry store is prominent in the film Breakfast at Tiffany's,
starring Audrey Hepburn. In Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn
Monroe, Tiffany's is mentioned in the song Diamonds Are a Girl's Best
Friend.
The New York jewelry store was shut down when Sweet Home Alabama
was shot inside. The store was not shut down, however, during any of the
filming of Breakfast at Tiffany's.
Tiffany boxes, bags and other items sport the Tiffany Blue color,
which is a registered trademark.
The first Tiffany catalog, known as the "Blue Book", was first published
in 1845 and is still being published.
In 1853 Charles Tiffany took control of the company and renamed it
Tiffany & Co.
In 1862 Tiffany & Co. supplied the Union Army with swords, flags and
surgical implements.
In 1867 Tiffany & Co. was the first to win an award for the excellence
in silverware at the Paris Exposition Universelle.
The company revised the Great Seal of the United States in 1885.
A Tiffany’s gemologist was instrumental in the international
adoption of the metric carat as a weight standard for gems, and the
Tiffany standard for sterling and platinum have been adopted as United
States Standards.
In 1968, First Lady Lady Bird Johnson
commissioned Tiffany to design a White House china service, which
featured 90 American flowers.
Source: Wikipedia - News Reports |