Pierre Camille Cartier (March 10, 1878October 27, 1964) was a French jeweler. He was one of three sons of Alfred Cartier and the brother of

Jacques Cartier Jacques Cartier (; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French maritime explorer from Brittany. Jacques Cartier was the first Europeans, European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, wh ...

and

Louis Cartier Louis Joseph Cartier ( , ; June 6, 1875 – July 23, 1942) was a French businessman, jeweler and heir to the Cartier jewelry house. From 1909, he and his brother Pierre were primarily based in New York City. In 1917, they acquired the Cart ...

. Pierre's grandfather,

Louis-François Cartier Louis-François Cartier (December 2, 1819 – May 15, 1904) was a French businessman, jeweler and watchmaker. He founded the world renowned jewelry house Cartier in 1847. He was the grandfather of Pierre Cartier, who opened the Cartier Buil ...

had taken over the jewelry workshop of his teacher Adolphe Picard, in 1847, thereby founding the famous

Cartier Cartier may refer to: People * Cartier (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Cartier Martin (born 1984), American basketball player Places * Cartier Island, an island north-west of Australia that is part of Australi ...

jewelry company.

Early life and education

Cartier was born March 10, 1878, in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, the second-eldest son of jeweller and Cartier founder Alfred Louis Francois Cartier (1841–1925) and his first wife Amélie Alice (née Grifeuille).

Career

In 1902, Pierre opened and began to manage the London Cartier store and in 1909, he opened the New York store, moving it in 1917 to the current location of 653 Fifth Avenue, the neo-Renaissance mansion of banker Morton Plant. After the death of his brothers in 1942, Pierre based his shop in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

until he retired to

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

in 1947. Cartier became the owner of the

Hope Diamond The Hope Diamond is a blue-violet diamond that has been famed for its great size since the 17th century. It was extracted in the 17th century from the Kollur Mine in Guntur, India,. The Hope Diamond is a blue diamond. Its exceptional size h ...

and on January 28, 1911 sold it to Edward B. McLean. In a deal concluded in the offices of the McLean family's ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' newspaper, Pierre Cartier sold the diamond for

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

180,000 (equivalent to $5,886,000 in 2023). A clause in the sale agreement for the diamond, that was widely believed to bring death and disaster to its owner, stated that "Should any fatality occur to the family of Edward B. McLean within six months, the said Hope diamond is agreed to be exchanged for jewelry of equal value". By March, the diamond had not been paid for in accordance with the terms in the sale agreement. Cartier hired a lawyer to sue McLean for payment, who responded by saying it was on a loan for inspection. On February 2, 1912, the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' ran a story with the headline: "Wealthy Purchasers of Famous Stone to Retain It Despite Sinister Reputation."

Personal life

On July 13, 1908, he married American-born Elma Rumsey, in the

16th arrondissement The 16th arrondissement of Paris (; ) is the westernmost of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, the capital city of France. Located on the city's Right Bank, it is adjacent to the 17th and 8th arrondissements to the northeast, as well as to the ...

. She was a daughter of Moses Rumsey, Jr., a wealthy pump industrialist, hailing from

Saint Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

. The family was described as being wealthier than the Cartiers at the time, and the marriage being a useful alliance. Elmas social circle included the Morgans,

Roosevelts The Roosevelt family is an American political family from New York whose members have included two United States presidents, a First Lady, and various merchants, bankers, politicians, inventors, clergymen, artists, and socialites. The progeny ...

and the McLeans. The couple had six children, including Marion Rumsey Cartier (April 4, 1911 – March 20, 1994).

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

References

Further reading