Trophees de Venise was designed by Julia Abadie and issued in 2001, the year of Beauty of the Earth at Hermès.

A detail version of her design, the Trophees de Venise II, was part of the Fall-Winter 2002 collection and features but a small section of the original.

 

Julia Abadie, a gifted artist responsible for numerous designs, took her inspiration from the Basilica San Marco, St. Mark’s Cathedral, in Venice, Italy and its marble floors and intricate mosaic decorations.   This world famous cathedral lies at the eastern end of the Piazza San Marco and is adjacent and connected to the Doge’s Palace. Originally it served as the chapel of the Doge, but has been the city’s main cathedral since 1807. 

St. Mark’s recognizable façade graces the scarf’s upper right corner while one of Venice’s famous bridges and gondolas the opposite. 

However, taking center stage are the horses of Saint Mark-Lysippos, also known as the Triumphal Quadriga, a set of four Byzantine bronze statues of horses that are on display inside the basilica.

Horses of Basilica San Marco original statutes are inside the cathedral, while bronze replicas grace the entrance façade 

(photo courtesy Tteskederivative work: Morn (talk) – Horses_of_Basilica_San_Marco.jpg, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15229898)

Below is an example of the inlaid marble floors (photo courtesy Tony Hisgett / photo modified) that are also included in Julia’s design.

Stone mosaic floors inside the cathedral (Photo by Mindy McAdams), courtesy reidsitaly.com

Byzantine influence is strong in both the floors and architecture and consequently in the carre itself…

Trophees de Venise, Trophies of Venice Hermès carre by Julia Abadie Fall-Winter 2001/2002 – SOLD

Trophées de Venise

In Venice victory is aquatic. Camped in its lagoons, the city of the Doges was the greatest port in the word.  It engaged in battles and ruled over Padua, Bergama and a multitude of other regions.  Such past glory bathes the present in reflected splendour: that of having conquered Time, of never having welcomed Progress with all its liabilities.  Never have horse-shoes trodden the pavements of San Marco; nor have they suffered a car’s exhaust”

Courtesy Carré H © Hermès, Paris 2001