Rare, Cheeky, Red Squirrels! “Casse-Noisette” (Nut-cracker)

What a gorgeous Hermes scarf! We love the little squirrels peaking out from behind the leaves! This scarf feels brand new, with all the associated stiffness and shine. But we found a couple of the tiniest of marks, so we’ve sent it to the cleaners just to be sure that we get it to you in the most perfect condition possible.  Condition 9.9/10.

‘‘The Nutcracker’ was designed in 1997 by Antoine de Jacquelot. A naturalist and artist with acute observational skills and precision, de Jacquelot’s designs include trees, plants, animals, birds and insects. Many of his Hermès designs are in the large format scarves and not available in the 90cm silk twill, for instance his 1997 creation “Ecume”.

His equally well known design, ‘L’Intrus’ is a veritable birds’ Bible! It features nearly 100 different varieties of bird, with a majestic falcon – ‘the intruder’ – at its centre. The birds, exquisitely painted in vibrant colours, include the kestrel, turtle dove, black mesange, swallow, and kingfisher. Each is individually identified, its name handwritten with care by the artist, around the border. On a gentle background of soft beige/salmon, they are painted in exquisite soft neutrals, punctuated by rich greens, reds, blues, grey, yellow and brown.

Isabelle Coudrat describes a 1914 exhibition of de Jacquelot’s work:

“His colour is easy, lively like the flight of a partridge, his brushwork opulent, ornate like the remiges of a pheasant. Antoine de Jacquelot loves nature and sublimates it through his art. The artist, who collaborated in particular with the Maison Hermès in Paris and the Manufacture Royale d’Aubusson, creates upholstery design, and weaves his creativity on other more unusual materials.

“In the window of the Hotel Bourbon, his gourds, harvested in-house in the countryside of Saint-Denis de Palin, look like Fabergé eggs, precious, decorative, graceful under the leaves and butterflies covering the Gironde shapes. Sanded, painted with acrylic, varnished, the gourd becomes a painting.

“Antoine’s dream? To exhibit his tapestries at the Jacques-C’ur palace… The Mehun-sur-Yèvre museum will soon offer him a retrospective exhibition of his entire career.”

Other de Jacquelot Hermes designs, all issued between 1992 and 2003, include: L’Arbre de Soie, Les Capucines, Chevrefeuille, Damballa Oueddo, Joyaux de l’Ete, Les Merises, Pampres, La Prairie, Tapis de Bois and La Vie au Grand Air.