Damier
Damier is the chequered canvas that Louis Vuitton created in 1888. It was a defence against copying: the house's earlier canvases had been widely imitated, and the new pattern carried a mark reading "marque L. Vuitton déposée", L. Vuitton registered trademark, woven into it.
Definition
Damier is a coated canvas printed with a chequerboard of alternating squares in two tones. It is one of the house's two signature canvases; the other, the Monogram canvas, followed in 1896. In 2008 the house released Damier Graphite, the same pattern in black and grey, giving the canvas a more masculine, urban look. In our handling, the classic brown version is sold as Damier Ébène and a cream and blue version as Damier Azur, and the canvas is used on trunks, bags and small leather goods alike.
Origin
Louis Vuitton founded the house in Paris in 1854. In 1858 he introduced flat-topped trunks covered in Trianon canvas, light and airtight, which could be stacked where the older rounded trunks could not. Because the look was widely imitated, he changed the Trianon design to beige and brown stripes in 1876, and in 1888 he created the Damier pattern with its registered-trademark legend. He died in 1892, and his son Georges launched the Monogram four years later.
The Japanese chequer case
In 2020 Louis Vuitton complained to the Japan Patent Office that pouches for Buddhist prayer beads and cases for temple stamp books, made by a maker in Asakusa, Tokyo, infringed its trademark rights in the Damier pattern. In 2021 the office rejected the claim, finding that the designs were based on ichimatsu moyō, a traditional Japanese chequered pattern, and did not imitate the Vuitton design. In our reading, the case is a reminder that a chequer alone is not Damier; the proportions, colours and legend matter, and our entry on wagara explains the Japanese pattern tradition the chequer belongs to.
Key facts
| Created | 1888, by Louis Vuitton |
|---|---|
| Legend | "marque L. Vuitton déposée" |
| Graphite | Black and grey version, 2008 |
| Japanese case | Japan Patent Office, 2021: ichimatsu is not Damier |
How to identify it
- The legend. Early and some later Damier carries the registered-trademark text within the squares.
- The squares. In our handling, the pattern runs straight and continuous across seams on well-made pieces.
- Codes. Our guide to date codes, serials and microchips explains how to date a piece.
- Age. In our handling, the coated canvas resists wear, and edges, corners and leather trim show age first.
Where it appears in the collection
Examples include an antique Damier courier trunk, a Damier Ébène special-order golf bag and a Damier Graphite Alpha backpack, on the Louis Vuitton shelf. Our guide to the Keepall, Speedy and Neverfull covers the bags most often made in Damier.
Related entries
- Certificate of authenticity: what papers can and cannot prove
- Superflat: the art behind the house's Murakami canvases
Sources
- Louis Vuitton, encyclopaedia entry, for the founding, the Trianon canvas, the 1876 stripes, the 1888 Damier and its legend, the Monogram of 1896, Damier Graphite in 2008 and the Japan Patent Office ruling of 2021. wikipedia.org
Last reviewed 15 November 2026. The Japonista Curation and Concierge Team, Tokyo, Japan.