Kering Sponsors Return of Historic Héloïse and Abélard Chest to France
TRUE ROMANCE: The so-called Héloïse and Abélard reliquary chest is to go on display in public for the first time as part of this year’s European Heritage Days, thanks to the patronage of Kering.
The chest, which contains relics and documents relating to the story of Héloïse d’Argenteuil and Pierre Abélard, a tale of impossible love that is said to have inspired a number of romantic writers in the 18th century, will be presented at the luxury group’s Paris headquarters on the weekend of Sept. 15 and 16 before entering the collection of the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris. The luxury group’s historic headquarters, opened in September 2016, are in the former Laennec hospital on Rue de Sèvres.
Kering in supporting the project said it was responding to a call from the French Ministry for Culture and Communication to keep this “national treasure” in France.
“This reflects our commitment to preserving, enriching and promoting France’s artistic and cultural legacy. For these same reasons I wanted this national treasure to be unveiled to the public during the European Heritage Days, in an unprecedented dialogue with the Pinault Collection, in this exceptional venue,” said François-Henri Pinault, chairman and chief executive officer of Kering.
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