Did you know that the Haut-Jura was once famous for its lapidaries? A word that is now ignored, yet it refers to a beautiful profession that was once carried out by local farmers during the long winter, namely the cutting and polishing of coloured stones. It is estimated that in 1920, nearly 8,000 lapidaries worked in the Haut-Jura! Focus on a little-known activity in our heritage.
With the exception of diamonds, gemstones are therefore worked by the lapidary, who also transforms himself, on occasion, into a trader or merchant for the sale of his creations. Gemstones are precious and ornamental gemstones and are worked by the lapidary using a small wheel, operated by a crank handle, and a stick where the stone is fixed with lapidary cement. An activity practiced by man since the Stone Age. If in the Middle Ages stones were used to set certain ornaments or jewellery, it was in the 17th century that techniques developed, particularly thanks to the lapidary Vincenzo Peruzzi. This Venetian invented the Peruzzi Cup. A cut that will make a mark in stone cutting with its famous 57 facets (32 for the upper part, the crown, 24 for the breech, i. e. the lower part, plus the table, which is the big facet of the top) and which allows the light path to give the gemstone the most brilliant colour possible. It should be noted that if this cut is also the one made by diamond dealers, others exist in particular the rectangle cut with cut edges used mainly for the cutting of emeralds.
And the lapidary tradition has been present on the peaks of the Haut-Jura since the 18th century. At the time, it was used as a supplement to farmers' resources during the winter months. This activity can therefore be rediscovered in the high plateaus, particularly in Mijoux in the Ain region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is indeed here that the Museum of fine stones and the lapidary is located. You can discover the origin of the lapidary profession and the fascinating world of gemstones, thanks to an exhibition of rough and cut stones from all over the world. It is also possible to observe the traditional tools of the local lapidaries. A video also allows you to familiarize yourself with the different steps that make a rough stone a real cut jewel. Lapidaries are first of all aesthetes who decide on the size most likely to enhance a piece depending in particular on the intensity of its colour. Then comes the preforming stage to give the general shape of the stone, the cutting stage to optimize the optical effects and, finally, the polishing stage to reinforce the brilliance and brilliance of the gem. All these steps will be perfectly explained, and we will be able to see the work of today's lapidaries in the manufacturing workshop and, of course, buy beautiful jewellery in the store or on their online jewellery store
