André Charles Boulle
Cabinetmaker to the Sun King, Louis IV of France
André-Charles Boulle (11 November 1642 – 29 February 1732) also known as Le joailler du meuble (the marquetry “jeweller”), is the most famous French cabinetmaker and the preeminent artist in the field of marquetry which is also known as “Inlay“.
Boulle was “the most remarkable of all French cabinetmakers”.
He was commended to Louis XIV of France, the “Sun King“, by Jean-Baptiste Colbert (29 August 1619 – 6 September 1683) as being “the most skilled craftsman in his profession”.
Over the centuries since his death, his name and that of his family has been given to the art he perfected, the inlay of brass, tortoiseshell, and pewter into ebony.
It is known as Boulle Work and the École Boulle, a college of fine arts and crafts and applied arts in Paris, bears testimony to his enduring art, the Art of inlay.
Jean Boulle Group
On 11 November 2017, the CEO of Sun King Diamonds, Bertrand Boulle, presented a 'Boulle Work' Jewellery Box to the Skipper of Partridge 1885.
The gift of the Jewellery box was to commemorate the 375th Anniversary of André-Charles Boulle’s Birth. The unique, one-of-a-kind inlaid Boulle Box, was made by the Curator and Ébéniste Yannick Chastang.
In doing so, the Jean Boulle Group (Mining, Medtech, Agriculture, Luxury) and Sun King Diamonds wanted to honour the life and works of André-Charles Boulle.
By creating a site about André Charles Boulle, they want to encourage and propagate knowledge about the Boulle Inlay process, also known as “Boulle® Work”.
This finetuning of an artistic process with precious and often priceless materials has been further developed by Sun King Diamonds and has resulted in the creation of Sun King® Diamond Coating. Sun King® Diamond Coating represents a refined diamond inlay for supercars, executive jets and superyachts.
Boulle®, Jean Boulle Group®, Sun King Diamonds® and Sun King® are registered trademarks.
The Principal of the Jean Boulle Group and associated companies is Jean-Raymond Boulle.
