Ward Landrigan, chairman of heritage jewelry houses Verdura and Belperron, died Sunday at age 84.
Landrigan was a former head of Sotheby’s American jewelry department who began his own estate-jewelry business in 1973. He acquired Verdura in 1985 and Belperron in 1999, intent on preserving and revitalizing both legendary jewelry brands.
Born Edward John Landrigan III on Aug. 7, 1941, in Newark, NJ, Landrigan’s jewelry career began as a 14-year-old Boy Scout fulfilling a community service requirement at a local jewelry store.
By age 24, he became head of Sotheby’s U.S. jewelry department, where he sold Elizabeth Taylor the Krupp diamond. “I personally delivered to her, and Richard Burton answered the door,” Landrigan told Town & Country in 1995.
His son Nico Landrigan joined Verdura in 2003, becoming president on Sept. 1, 2009. In 2015, Belperron LLC opened its first flagship salon in over 40 years on New York City’s Fifth Avenue.
“My father, by his own account, was the most unlikely man to end up leading two legendary jewelry houses,” Nico Landrigan said in a statement on Instagram. “Anyone who had the pleasure of meeting him would say it was his warmth, humor, and humility that truly set him apart.”
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Landrigan is survived by his wife Judith, daughter India Bayley, son Nico and five grandchildren.
