Christofle ist dank seiner Silberkreationen und Bestecken ein Sinnbild des Luxus und der Eleganz. Seit Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts beeinflusst Christofle jede Epoche mit seinen innovativen Kreationen und hat in dieser Zeit Stile und Produktionstechniken revolutioniert. Die Entwicklung des Zeitgeschmacks, der Gebräuche und Traditionen wurden durch Christofle maßgeblich beeinflußt. Man Ray und Jean Cocteau sind mit Christofle ebenso verbunden wie avantgardistische Architekten wie Gio Ponti, moderne Silberschmiede wie Lino Sabattini und Christ Fjerdingstad, sowie Martin Szekely, Andrée Putman, Richard Hutten und Ora Ïto als zeitgenössische Designer. Die Silberwaren von Christofle sind und waren auf den Tischen von Kaisern und Maharadschas ebenso gegenwärtig wie an Bord des Orient Express und transatlantischer Luxus-Liner und zeitgenössischen Gourmet-Tempel: Damals wie heute macht Christofle nachhaltigen Eindruck.
The name comes from Marly Castle,built near Paris by Louis XIV, which served as a place to entertain guests after the hunt.It was a place where the rigor of the Versailles Etiquette' was left aside. King Louis XV spent a lot of time there, and the interior was decorated to his personal tastes. This small castle, along with its 12 hunting pavilionswere destroyed during the French Revolution. The gardens and the watering place are all that remain with the exception of the statues called the 'Marly Horses' which were saved, and can be seen today where theChamps Elysées joins the Place de la Concorde.The Marly pattern is ornamented in the Rocaille style which best presentsXVIII century France. This style came back into vogue at the end of the XIX century, when this pattern was created. Christofle reinvented the old motifs applying them to the highest standards befitting of the celebratedhallmark.The delicatness of the ornamenting can be seen in the perfectly balancedsuppleness of the chasing technique. This is Christofle's oldest pattern. It has never been omitted from the catalogues, and has always been in high demand over the past 150 years, despite changing fashions. Perhaps theexplanation is that it has come to be seen by many as 'typically French'; what one expects to find on a French table.