Louis Vuitton’s Damier canvas
The chequered pattern in two browns that Vuitton developed to stop the copies.
Vuitton’s grey and striped canvases were copied, and in 1888 Georges Vuitton had a chequered pattern made with the firm’s name written into it. It was one of the first examples of a pattern becoming a registered trademark.
The Damier was replaced in 1896 by the monogram but was revived in 1996. The pattern shows how early luxury brands had to protect themselves against imitations.
Materials: Printed cotton canvas, leather, brass, wood
Manufacture: Designed in 1888 by Georges Vuitton; made again since 1996.
The squares in two browns like a chessboard.
The words marque L. Vuitton déposée in some of the squares.
The wooden slats and the brass fittings.