The Essential Facts
- Augis (founded 1830, Lyon) built its name on sentimental gold medals, most famously La Médaille d’Amour. It’s been part of Groupe Chevalier since 2017, but the craftsmanship still passes through the same family workshops.
- Arthus Bertrand (founded 1803, Paris) is the older of the two, known for baptism medals and official honors like the Légion d’honneur insignia. It joined the same Groupe Chevalier orbit in 2012.
- Mellerio, founded in 1613, is the rare exception: still 100% owned and run by the founding family, 14 generations later.
- « Family-owned » and « family craftsmanship » aren’t the same claim. Only one of these three houses can honestly make the first one.
- Prices run roughly €115 to €700 at Augis, €250 to €700+ at Arthus Bertrand, and by request only at Mellerio.
How the Three Houses Compare
| Criterion | Augis | Arthus Bertrand | Mellerio |
| Founded | 1830, Lyon | 1803, Paris | 1613, Paris |
| Owned today by | Groupe Chevalier (since 2017) | Groupe Chevalier, with the Guerrand-Hermès family as a founding shareholder since 2012 | The Mellerio family, 100% |
| Manufacturing | France, within Groupe Chevalier’s workshops | Saumur and Palaiseau, France | Paris atelier, rue de la Paix |
| Signature piece | La Médaille d’Amour | Baptism medals, Légion d’honneur insignia | Bespoke haute joaillerie |
| Typical price range | €115 – €700 | €250 – €700+ | Price on request |
| Best for | Sentimental gifts, 9ct or 18ct gold | Institutional prestige, 18ct gold only | A single, unbroken family lineage |
What Made Augis a Byword for French Family Craftsmanship?
Augis started as a small Lyon jewelry shop in 1830, opened by Eugène Coquais. The name changed hands within the family through marriage and inheritance until Alphonse Augis gave it his own name in 1896. His son Alphonse designed the house’s best-known piece in 1907, a gold medal engraved with a line from a Rosemonde Gérard poem, sold ever since as La Médaille d’Amour.
The family ran the house until 2012, when rising raw material costs pushed it into receivership. Arthus Bertrand took it over that year, and Groupe Chevalier absorbed it in 2017. What didn’t change: the medals are still gold-stamped in France, and Augis’s own communication is explicit that the craft stayed « ancestral and familial » even after the sale. For anyone weighing a baptism gift, that Marian medal tradition is worth a closer look on its own.
Why Is Arthus Bertrand Often Grouped With Augis?
Arthus Bertrand and Augis sit under the same parent company today, which is why they keep coming up together. Founded in 1803 as a Paris publishing house, Arthus Bertrand pivoted to medals and military decorations after merging with the Marion embroidery family in the 1860s, then launched its baptism medal line in 1925 and went on to produce the Légion d’honneur collar and the Ordre National du Mérite medal.
The family thread frayed the same year as Augis’s: in 2012, the Guerrand-Hermès family (a branch of the Hermès family) took a 45% stake, and an outside CEO replaced the last Arthus-Bertrand descendant at the helm. Manufacturing still happens in the house’s own French workshops, in Saumur and Palaiseau, and the catalog leans harder into 18-carat gold and official symbolism than Augis does. If gold purity and provenance matter to you, it’s worth comparing carat options across French jewelers before deciding.
Is Mellerio Really the Last Independent French Jewelry House?
Yes, by its own account and by most trade sources: Mellerio is the last French haute joaillerie house still owned and run by its founding family. The Mellerio family arrived from Italy’s Val Vigezzo in the early 1600s and opened on rue de la Paix after a royal privilege granted in 1613. Fourteen generations later, Laure-Isabelle Mellerio leads the house, which restructured into a family holding in 2010 and belongs to Les Hénokiens, the club of family businesses older than 200 years.
Mellerio doesn’t compete on price accessibility. Its jewelry is largely bespoke, priced on request, and positioned well above the medal-and-pendant category where Augis and Arthus Bertrand operate. It’s a different kind of purchase, not a better or worse one.
How to Choose Based on What You Need
If You Want an Accessible, Sentimental Family Medal
Augis remains the more approachable entry point, with both 9-carat and 18-carat gold options and a catalog still centered on love and baptism medals. Its price range makes it realistic to buy more than one for siblings or godchildren without stretching the budget.
If You Want Institutional Prestige and 18-Carat Gold Only
Arthus Bertrand’s bicentennial track record with official French honors gives its baptism medals a different kind of weight, and it manufactures exclusively in 18-carat gold. It suits buyers who want the institutional association even if the price sits a step higher.
If You Want a Genuinely Independent, Multi-Generation House
Mellerio is the one to consider if what matters most is the ownership story itself: the same family, the same address, for over four centuries. Expect bespoke pricing rather than a fixed catalog.
Our Take
For a baptism or love medal at a fair price, Augis is a sound first choice: nearly 200 years of the same craft, real gold options at both carat levels, and a piece (the Médaille d’Amour) with genuine cultural staying power. Arthus Bertrand is the natural alternative if institutional prestige and exclusively 18-carat gold matter more than price. Mellerio isn’t really a competitor in this price bracket, it’s a different conversation entirely, reserved for buyers who want an unbroken single-family lineage above everything else, at a bespoke budget to match.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Augis and Arthus Bertrand still owned by their founding families?
No. Both changed hands in the early 2010s. Augis was taken over by Arthus Bertrand in 2012 after financial difficulties, then folded into Groupe Chevalier in 2017. Arthus Bertrand itself brought in the Guerrand-Hermès family as a shareholder in 2012 and appointed a non-family CEO the same year. Family craftsmen from both houses generally stayed on to make the jewelry, but ownership now sits with the group.
What is Groupe Chevalier?
Groupe Chevalier is the French holding company that owns Arthus Bertrand, Augis, Drago and Pichard-Balme. Based in Palaiseau, it runs two manufacturing workshops and employs close to 250 people across its four jewelry and medal brands.
Which French jewelry house is genuinely still independent and family-run?
Mellerio, founded in Paris in 1613, is generally cited as the last independent haute joaillerie house in France still owned and run by its founding family, now in its 14th generation under Laure-Isabelle Mellerio.
Is Augis jewelry still made in France?
Yes. Augis medals continue to be manufactured in France, within Groupe Chevalier’s workshop network, using the same gold-stamping techniques the house has relied on since the 19th century.
How much does an Augis or Arthus Bertrand medal typically cost?
Augis pieces generally range from about €115 for a silver medal to around €700 for gold designs. Arthus Bertrand’s gold medals typically start around €250 and can go past €700 for more elaborate pieces, reflecting its 18-carat-only positioning.
Can you still find vintage or antique Augis pieces?
Yes. Because Augis medals span nearly two centuries of production, vintage pieces from the 1950s through the 1980s, particularly gold Virgin Mary and love medals, regularly appear on the antique and secondhand jewelry market.
