Fashion

All Signs Point to CHANEL’s Latest High Jewelry Collection

BYKhaoula Ghanem

July 6, 2026

There are fashion houses with archives, and then there is Chanel, whose greatest archive might be Gabrielle Chanel’s apartment at 31 Rue Cambon. Preserved much as she left it, the space offers a map of the symbols that shaped her imagination: Lions, stars, camellias and lucky charms. It’s those same emblems that return in Signes & Symboles, the latest high jewelry collection from the House.

Long before fashion became obsessed with storytelling, Gabrielle Chanel had already mastered the art of creating a visual language. She surrounded herself with objects that reflected her beliefs, memories and intuition, assigning them meanings that would eventually become inseparable from the House itself. Lions nodded to her Leo zodiac sign, stars recalled both the night skies of Aubazine, where she spent part of her childhood, and the camellia— a flower she admired for its perfect geometry and lack of fragrance—became one of fashion’s most recognizable motifs. The Mediterranean sun, meanwhile, reflected the warmth and optimism she found at La Pausa, her villa on the French Riviera. Together, these recurring emblems became the creative compass she returned to throughout her life, resurfacing in her interiors, her couture, and her jewelry.

*Portrait of Gabrielle Chanel creating jewels, 1957.*
© Mark Shaw / mptvimages

That idea forms the foundation of Signes & Symboles, an 85-piece high jewelry collection that brings together the four most enduring symbols of Gabrielle Chanel’s universe in a way the House has never quite done before. Rather than treating the lion, camellia, star and sun as individual icons, the CHANEL Jewelry Creation Studio imagines them in conversation with one another, transforming the motifs into sculptural necklaces, rings, brooches and talismanic objects that feel as though they have been lifted directly from Rue Cambon’s shelves and recast in precious stones.

The collection unfolds across four chapters. The first, Les Imprimés, reinterprets Chanel’s symbols as repeating patterns that resemble embroidered textiles translated into gemstones. Diamonds are arranged in rhythmic vertical compositions, while sapphires, emeralds and rubies punctuate the designs with bold flashes of color. At its center is the extraordinary Imprimé Lion necklace, where a diamond-paved lion’s head anchors a cascading composition of camellias, stars and suns before culminating in a striking 20.66-carat octagonal sapphire. Elsewhere, the Imprimé Émeraude ring frames a vivid 10.44-carat emerald with diamond-set camellias, balancing graphic precision with softness.

The lion takes center stage once again in Le Lion Emblématique, where CHANEL revisits one of its most powerful house symbols. Here, the animal is rendered with remarkable restraint. Rather than roaring or appearing overtly figurative, it emerges almost like a sculpted relief carved into onyx, surrounded by diamonds and richly saturated rubies. The Lion Millénaire necklace juxtaposes black onyx with an exceptional ruby, creating a dramatic interplay between shadow and light, while the matching ring cleverly separates into two individual pieces, allowing the wearer to alternate between gemstone and lion. A brooch completes the story with a magnificent mane composed of rubies, sapphires, emeralds and turquoise.

Les Bijoux Talismans is inspired by Gabrielle Chanel’s lifelong belief that jewelry could offer protection as much as adornment. Throughout her life, she surrounded herself with objects she considered lucky, and this section transforms that philosophy into wearable amulets. Graphic pendants engraved with stars, sculptural camellias, miniature lions and radiant suns are suspended from tubular chains, enriched with diamonds, pink sapphires, carnelian, turquoise, chrysoprase and white ceramic.

The final chapter, Les Symboles, distills Chanel’s visual language into a series of spectacular one-of-a-kind creations. A transformable necklace combines imperial topaz, tanzanite and carnelian before separating into a bracelet and earrings. A camellia blooms around a flawless 10.32-carat diamond, while a monumental cabochon sapphire becomes the centerpiece of another ring, surrounded by a halo of sapphires and diamonds. Throughout, color plays an unexpectedly important role, with the House pairing its signature diamonds with vivid blues, fiery oranges, lush greens and rich pinks.

The beauty of Signes & Symboles lies not only in its diamonds, sapphires and emeralds—which obviously are stunning—but in the ideas they represent. Gabrielle Chanel understood that the most powerful symbols are the ones that carry a story, and she spent a lifetime turning her own beliefs, memories, and fascinations into the visual language of her House. This collection reminds us that imagination, when given form, can become timeless.

All Signs Point to CHANEL’s Latest High Jewelry Collection

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All Signs Point to CHANEL’s Latest High Jewelry Collection

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