Gucci Evening Bags and Minaudières

No list of iconic designer purses would be complete without vintage Gucci bags. One of the most recognizable fashion brands and the biggest-selling Italian label in the world, Gucci was founded by Guccio Gucci (1881–1953) in Florence in 1921. Today the brand is a giant in the fashion industry — it’s known for its eclectic, creative designs for handbags, shoulder bags, crossbody bags and other bags and accessories.

In the mid-1930s, a League of Nations embargo against Italy pushed Gucci to experiment with alternatives to imported leather. Its woven hemp fabric from Naples, produced with a pattern of small interconnected diamonds outlined in brown against a tan background — known as Gucci diamante — was a hit, and was first used on suitcases and other luggage before finding enduring popularity on handbags. Soon, Gucci found another solution for problematic leather shortages: bamboo from Japan.

Bamboo was easily available and could be formed into clever little horseshoe-shaped handles for purses and bags. It took 13 hours to make one Gucci Bamboo bag. But the slow process paid off. The purse, which launched in 1947, became Gucci’s first “It” bag. In the 1950s, Elizabeth Taylor carried one of Gucci’s bamboo-handled tote bags. After Jackie Kennedy was seen sporting a slouchy Gucci tote in 1961, it was quickly, officially (and wisely) rechristened the Jackie bag. Then Grace Kelly, on a visit to the boutique in Milan, inspired Rodolfo Gucci to work with Italian illustrator and Gucci textile designer Vittorio Accornero on the Flora print in 1966. Taking cues from Sandro Botticelli’s Primavera, with its pattern of flora and insects, it was painted entirely by hand and featured no fewer than 37 colors.

Vintage Gucci handbags are some of the most coveted purses on the market. They come in many different styles, but a recognizable marker is the GG Supreme canvas pattern. Some iconic Gucci bags are the canvas suitcase, the Dionysus bag — with its elegant chain and ornate tiger-head clasp — and the GG Marmont.

Designer Alessandro Michele, who stepped into the role of creative director at Gucci in early 2015, staged a revolution by scrapping the brand’s hyper-sexy jet-set vibe for a nerdy, flea-market-romantic, gender-bending cool. He brought back and updated the brand’s double G logo and used it on the much-sought-after Marmont flap bag. With its joyful ’70s vibe, the iconic piece pairs as well with jeans and T-shirt as with the mixed patterns and eclectic combinations of Gucci’s collections in recent years.

Long before Alessandro Michele first sent his youthful, fanciful visions down the Gucci runway, this heritage brand was a favorite of counterfeiters, and it's important to know how to tell if a vintage Gucci bag is real — read about how to determine if the accessory you're holding is an authentic Italian luxury item or a cheap knockoff.

Find a range of authentic vintage Gucci clutches, top handle bags, backpacks and other bags on 1stDibs.