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  • Classic Boat

    FRENCH POLISH

    Sep 11, 2020 5 minutes
    WORDS GERALD GUETAT
    PHOTOGRAPHS
    HENRI THIBAULT

    There are few small family businesses – and even fewer boatyards – that can trace their origins back to the Napoleonic era. Location is key for standing the test of time, and around the alpine lakes you will find more boatbuilders with a long tradition of craftmanship than pretty much anywhere else. In Italy, Austria, Germany or Switzerland, the fresh waters are protected by mountain barriers, a defensive wall against the ravages of time that so devastate the marine coastlines.

    However, the fate of the Portier house (originally Suter) is an exception. It was founded in 1815, a crucial year, full of twists, and the start of a new era in Europe. The emperor Napoleon abdicated that year on 22 June.

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