Handbags by Gucci During the 1950s and ’60s

Born 1881 in Florence, Tuscany, Italian businessman and fashion designer Guccio Gucci founded the House of Gucci as a small family-owned leather shop in 1921. He began selling saddles, leather bags and other accessories to horsemen in the 1920s.

In 1938, Gucci expanded his business to a second location in Rome at the insistence of his son Aldo. His one-man business eventually turned into a family business when his sons joined the company. Aldo, the eldest son who joined in 1925, proved particularly innovative in developing new products, including the company’s first pigskin bag.

In 1947, responding to post-war material scarcity, Gucci created the Bamboo Bag, using lightweight bamboo for handles, which became one of the brand’s signature designs.

In 1951, Gucci opened their store in Milan. He wanted to keep the business small, and for nearly the entirety of his life, the company remained only in Italy. Two weeks before Guccio Gucci’s death, the New York Gucci boutique was opened by his sons Aldo, Rodolfo, and Vasco.

Gucci died in 1953 in Milan. After his death, the business was left to his four remaining sons. With the change in leadership the Gucci brand expanded to opening international locations and a diversification of product line. Here are some handbags designed by Gucci during the 1950s and 1960s.

Model in a 1958 Packard Hawk, wearing a dress by David Goodstein, necklace by Verdura, travel handbag by Gucci, photo by Karen Radkai, 1958

Anne St. Marie in classic tweed suit with a birchbark pattern of black, beige and taupe by Davidow, horseblanket plaid bag by Gucci, brown beaver-felt toque by Sally Victor, photo by Henry Clarke, Vogue, August 1, 1955

Barbara Mullen in coat of black-dyed Southwest-African Persian lamb with UMPA black mink collar by Fredrica, hat by Emme, bag by Gucci, photo by Irving Penn, Vogue, October 1, 1955

Joan Romano in coat of black-dyed Alaska sealskin with natural Labrador otter collar by Fredrica, casque hat by Emme, Gucci bag, photo by Irving Penn, Vogue, October 1, 1955

Sunny Harnett in Glen Plaid tunic jacket over a pleated dress by Larry Aldrich, Gucci bag, diamonds by Van Cleef & Arpels, Kislav gloves, photo by Clifford Coffin, Vogue, August 1, 1955

Suzy Parker in ruby-red wool coat with slightly flaring lines by Irving Bader, hat by Lilly Daché, calfskin bag by Gucci, photo by Wilhela Cushman, Ladies' Home Journal, September 1955

Anne St. Marie in "day or night" black British wool dress with a high soft belt by Traina-Norell, fur beret by Lilly Daché, Gucci handbag, photo by Horst P. Horst, Vogue, September 1, 1956

Anne St. Marie wearing blue coat by Jablow, with hat by Dior New Look, holding Gucci bag, and David Webb jewelry, July 1956

Barbara Mullen in navy blue wool suit, jacket is a true bolero curving to the waist over white linen blouse and high-rise skirt by Adele Simpson, Lilly Daché hat, Gucci bag, photo by Frances McLaughlin, Vogue, January 1956

Evelyn Tripp in black and white checked woolen sheath worn under a short black bolero, a scarf in the same check is wrapped around the neck, all by Kasper, black lizard bag by Gucci, photo by Frances McLaughlin, Vogue, March 1, 1956

Evelyn Tripp in navy wool crêpe slim short-sleeved dress worn under a short double-breasted jacket by Hannah Troy, red straw hat by Emme, Gucci bag, photo by Frances McLaughlin, Vogue, January 1956

Georgia Hamilton in pale blue fleece coat with narrowing hem by Originala, purse by Gucci, Verdura compact, photo by Richard Avedon, Harper's Bazaar U.S., March 1956

Jessica Ford in navy-blue worsted sheath with white collar and cuffs, self-belt begins at the sides and ties slightly lifted waist by Branell, cloche by Emme, bag by Gucci, photo by Karen Radkai, Vogue, December 1, 1956

Model in oatmeal tweed suit, the jacket curved out from the shoulder blades, lined in silky moleskin by Hattie Carnegie, photo by Gleb Derujinsky, Harper's Bazaar, September 1956

Sunny Harnett in wool tweed suit with a shirt jacket by Zelinka-Matlick, chamois beret by Sally Victor, Gucci handbag, photo by Frances McLaughlin, Vogue, January 1956

Joan Friedman in smoky beige Glen-plaid wool suit with belted jacket and slim skirt by Handmacher, hat by Emme, bag by Gucci, photo by Roger Prigent, Vogue, February 1, 1957

Joan Romano in navy and white houndstooth coat, knee-length of British wool by Ben Gershel, hat by Dior-New York, Gucci calfskin bag, Bally shoes, photo by Clifford Coffin, Vogue, March 1, 1957

Model in black rayon-acetate dress with an easy skirt and short sleeves by Jack Horowitz, tangerine hat by Lilly Daché, handbag by Gucci, photo by Wilhela Cushman, Ladies' Home Journal, August 1957

Sunny Harnett in roomy corduroy coat by George Carmel, sable beret by Emme, handbag by Gucci, photo by Horst P. Horst, Vogue, September 15, 1957

Brigitte Bardot wearing a coat of YSL, Gucci bag and Charles Jourdan boots, arriving in London to attend the premiere of her latest movie 'Shalako' which co-starred Sean Connery, December 11, 1968

Charlotte Rampling wearing ensemble by Ken Scott and Gucci bag, photographed at the Heathrow Airport in London, on her way to Rome, for the premiere of her latest movie “Kidnapping”, March 31, 1968

Isabella Albonico in black and white knitted wool dress with wide leather belt by Nettie Rosenstein, hat by Mr. Arnold, handbag by Gucci, shoes by Martinique, photo by Karen Radkai, Vogue, January 1, 1959

Model in black and gray Glen plaid worsted suit with a little velvet collar by Ben Zuckerman, civet-dyed rabbit hat by Sally Victor, handbag by Gucci, photo by Horst P. Horst, Vogue, September 1, 1959

Isabella Albonico in moss-green shaggy wool coat with rounded shoulders and double-breasted by Christian Dior-New York, hat also by Dior-New York, handbag by Gucci, photo by Tom Palumbo, Vogue, August 15, 1960

Katherine Pastrie in cherry and white British wool tweed suit by Monte San & Pruzan, hat by Halston, Gucci handbag, jewelry by Van Cleef & Arpels, photo by Tom Palumbo, Vogue, January 15, 1960

Model in seasonless corduroy crêpe dress in soft shade of taupe with covered top and narrow skirt by Howard Greer, hat by Dior-New York, Gucci handbag, photo by Karen Radkai, Vogue, July 1, 1960

Sophia Loren wearing coat by Guy Laroche and Gucci handbag, photographed in Rome, April 24, 1960

Sandra Paul in Autumn Haze EMBA mink coat by Maximilian, Gucci handbag, Verdura earrings, photo by Irving Penn, Vogue, December 1, 1961

Audrey Sedor in black and white diagonal tweed shift with round neck with leather buttons and buttonholes on the shoulders by Abe Schrader, white bowler by Adolfo, Gucci handbag, photo by Ehud, Harper's Bazaar, September 1962

Model in three-piece in tobacco-brown Scottish frieze wool, self-checked for the suit, plain for the cape by Aquascutum, hat by Christian Dior Chapeaux, hide bag by Gucci, photo by David Hurn, Harper's Bazaar UK, August 1963

Camilla Sparv in brown and cream flecked wool tweed coat with buttons of tortoise by Monte-Sano & Pruzan, hat by Halston, handbag by Gucci, photo by Francesco Scavullo at Harry Winston, Harper's Bazaar, January 1964