Guardians Of Her Universe

IT'S NO SECRET that Gabrielle Coco Chanel was a superstitious woman. Scattered across her very well-preserved apartment at 31 Rue Cambon( in 1918 she acquired the building where the flagship boutique and her home still stand today.) are talismans and artifacts that show her fixation with lions, crystals and wheat.

The lion - her astrological sign Leo - and other animal ornaments such as a frog and Japanese deer gave her a sense of protection, and she also believed in the healing power of crystals. But one of her strongest superstitions revolved around wheat, perhaps because she associated it with her father (who abandoned her and…