Eugene Fontenay

Eugene Fontenay was a French goldsmiths of the 19th century born in 1823 in Paris.  He was the third generation of a family of jewelers.  After schooling he entered the trade through an arranged apprenticeship with Marchand.  After completing his training he joined the firm of Dutreih.  In 1847 Fontenay made the decision to set up his own business and founded his workshop at 2 rue Favart, north of the Palais Royal in Paris’s 2nd arrondissement.  In a few years he was supplying jewelers like Cartier with a variety of jewels.  In 1855 he participated in the Paris Exposition Universelle.  Three years later he produced a tiara for the Empress Eugénie.  In 1861 the Louvre exhibited