Ref.0018
Main gate with 100 linear feet of railing

Napoleon III iron main gate and fence, for a large proprety. Wrought iron posts decorated with volutes surround the gate. The vertical rods are topped with pikes of different sizes. These gates came from a very large property and were built in Saint Amand Les Eaux (in the North of France) in the second half of the 19th century for the marriage of a brewer's daughter to a Russian aristocrat, a descendant of the Nicolov family.

Ref.03222
Exceptional large clock with the Fô dogs

Brown patina bronze, the base in Red Griotte marble. This magnificent clock was made in France around 1880 out of authentically Chinese bronzes. Two large Foo Dogs, made in China at the start of the 19th century, stand on their hind legs, and support the pendulum with their forelimbs. The pendulum mechanism sits inside a Chinese bronze vase that was specifically cut at its base and reused to make up the body of this clock. It is decorated all over its surface with engraved ornaments. Two dragons carved in relief are placed on the front of this vase and surround the clock's dial. On the back, there is a cockerel with its wings spread, with its head carved in relief. The extremely high quality bronze and the very skilful use of composition makes this clock very original. This clock is typical of a technique that was popular towards the end of the 19th century, which derived from a profound taste in the Far East. This technique involved reusing authentically Chinese elements on European designed objects, which were intended to be used on the most luxurious interiors. The clock's magnificence makes us reflect on the fact that it was made by a true amateur of Chinese Art. The dial's numerals are made out of enamel and are true Chinese numerals. The clock hands feature a dragon which is the result of excellent chiselling skill. These different elements are of French craftsmanship, as is the pendulum featuring an animal with tentacles. The pendulum is signed “ L.M et Cie, Médaille de bronze” (L.M and Cie, Bronze Medal), which confirms that it is off French craftsmanship and was made around 1880.

Ref.12402
Antique gilded trumeau from the Restoration period decorated with shells

Antique Restoration period trumeau, gilded with shell decoration, mercury mirror.

Ref.13653
CHRISTOFLE - Exceptional planter in electroplated copper, partially copper colored, gilt, silvered and burnished on a silver background, circa 1878

This exceptional planter was produced by the silver company Christofle from a model by the architect and theorist Emile Reiber (1826-1893), then chief of the house’s drawing workshop since 1865. Strongly marked by the Japanese or Chinese bronzes, Emile Reiber is one of the Japonisme leader in the decorative arts in France. He is especially inspired by the Japanese mixed-metal objects called Mokume, for his tries on the polychromatic research. Thus, he composed colored models for the Christofle company made thanks to the electroplated technique, of which the French rights of the Elkington’s patent were bought by Charles Christofle (1805-1863), founder of the house, in 1842, then really developed by Henri Bouilhet in the workshops. It’s this way that Emile Reiber permits the company to renew its production in the 1870’s, by creating a collection of original decorative pieces mainly Japan inspired. They were particularly noticed during their presentation in the World Fairs of Vienna in 1873 and Paris 1878, making of Christofle, the silversmith of the colored bronze. Since its origins, Christofle has followed the tastes of its time, reflecting the artistic movements in vogue. From the Monarchy of July to the late 19th century, prevail the eclecticism and the naturalism, while the East favors the research for new decors. On the Orientalism and Japonism momentum, nature inspires the production of objects and places progressively on the market objects with various shapes and decorations. Thus, the plants theme in the decor is generalized in the 1880’s. To always better renew its decorative vocabulary, the most important French Silver house of the second half of the 19th century, occasionally asks famous artists to work for them. It’s this way that Emile Reiber draws the model of our planter edited in diverse colors, on black or red backgrounds. Presenting a decor in the Japanese taste, the silver colored body of our gardener shows a decor composed of copper colored quince flowers with burnished leaves and also burnished cherry tree branches. It rests on gilt bronze feet taking the shape of pine cones that we also find on the handles. The different metallic shades are obtained thanks to the electroplated technique. Similar in its principle to the gilding or the silver plating, the electroplating is a fabrication proceed which is a ruthless competitor to the different cast iron techniques. The aim is to allow the metal reproduction of any object, whatever its nature. The huge advantage of this technique compared to the cast iron is to make an object immediately perfect, without mending or carving it.

Ref.13081
Set of around 2 m² of terracotta floor tiles in square shape

Antique terracotta floor tiles of around 2 m² in a square shape, from the 19th century. The sides are 8" 1/4 to 8" 7/16 for 3/16" to 1" 3/8 thick.

Ref.15551
Gustave VANAISE, Innocence, 1884

This painting titled Innocence was created by Gustave Vanaise in 1884. Gustave Vanaise (Ghent, 1854-Saint-Gilles, 1902) studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent under Théodore Canneel, and later in Brussels. He notably produced historical paintings, portraits, and intimate scenes; many of his works are preserved at the Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent. Vanaise participated regularly in the Paris Salon from 1879 to 1888; in 1884, he exhibited a Young Boy with a Pigeon, which may be this very piece. This work is an allegory of Innocence. Against a backdrop of a luminous yellow cloth stands the figure of a young boy lying on the ground, propped up on his elbows; his youth and nudity, both symbols of innocence, are further emphasized by the dove he holds in his left hand, a symbol of purity. The boy seems about to kiss the bird on the beak. The scene is completed on the right by a low-relief representing a gentle Madonna and Child, set against the background. The artist’s choice of subject and treatment place this work at the boundary between allegory and intimate scene, a genre in which the painter excelled: the presence of the yellow sheet in the background, intended to close the scene, adds to the composition’s closed, intimate character, while the use of symbols and the presence of the Virgin and Child tend to place the work in allegorical painting. In a similar spirit, Vanaise painted The Bacchante, a piece housed at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. It depicts a woman crowned with ivy lying sensually on the ground, while a young boy resembling the one in Innocence – though likely a young satyr here – plays the flute.