Ref.3076
Beautiful antique Louis XVI style fireplace in Yellow from Siena marble with half-columns

Beautiful antique Louis XVI style fireplace made out of Jaune de Sienne marble during the 19th century. Both jambs are half-columns shaped with flutings and features capitals with acanthus leaves. The frieze is also fluted. Both sides of the fireplace are paneled and features air vents.

Ref.12723
Rare pair of winged lions, cast iron, 19th century

Although called "griffins" by the artist and in the foundry's catalogue, they are rather a pair of winged lions, as evidenced by the absence of bird beaks, in cast iron and made by the Ducel or Val d'Osne foundry at the end of the 19th century after a model by Eugène-Louis Lequesne. Le Monde illustré, 18 juillet 1863, pp. 13-16. Initially designed to be part of the decoration of the current Musée de Picardie in Amiens as part of the project for the exterior and interior decoration of the museum by the architect Arthur Diet, these two winged lions, known as "griffins", were commissioned in 1861 by Diet to the sculptor Eugène-Louis Lequesne. In a letter from the architect dated 31 December 1861 addressed to a commission, Diet specified that E. Lequesne: "will make a sketch of them but on condition that these animals (be made) after the antique. If we wanted animals copied from nature, he would not interfere". On 8 February 1861, Lequesne submitted his model, which he exhibits at the 1863 Salon. These "griffins" were drawn by Lequesne after the antique and were included in the catalogue of the Ducel or Val d'Osne foundry at the end of the 19th century. Very popular, this model was delivered in several countries as orders for monuments or outdoor decorations were received. This model can be found in two of the foundry's catalogues : Ducel Val d’Osne catalogue, Folio 405 – Plate 238, N° 10613 and N° 10613 bis. Eugène-Louis Lequesne (1815-1887) was a French sculptor, student of James Pradier, he exhibited his work at the Salon from 1842. He was awarded of the First Prize of Rome in 1844 and had already won second place in 1843. Brilliant sculptor, he was nominated as knight of the Legion of Honour in 1855 and regularly exhibited his work at the Salon, including the model for our sculptures. Many of his works, including the famous "Dancing Faun", adorn public spaces. The figure of the winged lion dates back to the ancient period. This period provided famous examples such as the "Winged Lion of Vulci" from the Etruscan civilisation. In the ancient Greco-Roman world, from which the models that inspired Lequesne were made, artistic representations of the lion were very frequently associated with the figure of the guardian, both of the world of the living and dead. This pair of winged lions is associated with the 19th century taste for both Antiquity and representations of the fantastic. Other sculptors of Lequesne's time produced similar sculptures, such as the chimeras of Henri-Alfred Jacquemart or the statue of the winged lion by Auguste-Nicolas Cain. Comparison work : Henri-Alfred Jacquemart, Chimère ailée, fontaine Saint-Michel, Paris, France, 1858-1860. Other international exemple of « griffins » by Val d’Osne foundry : Town Square Fountain, Leicester, United Kingdom.

Ref.12820
Théodore DECK (1823-1891), Earthenware dish with a flying mallard

This glazed ceramic dish was made in the workshop of the ceramist Théodore Deck (1823-1891). Théodore Deck initially trained as a stove maker. When he set up in Paris on his own account in 1858, he made stove linings and then, on the strength of his success, moved into ceramics. The studio produced many dishes in collaboration with well-known painters, including Ernest Carrière, who made a series of dishes on the same subject as this one in the 1890s-1900s. Deck gradually perfected his technique and enjoyed great success at the many World’s Fairs he took part in. In 1878, he was made an Officer of the Légion d'Honneur. He ran the Sèvres factory between 1887 and his death in 1891. The dish is decorated with an extremely naturalistic mallard captured in full flight, in the middle of a sky with cottony clouds and above a vast expanse of water as if wrinkled by a breath of wind. The background of this dish is particularly elaborate, clearly distinguishing between the sky and the water thanks to variations in the thickness of the glaze. This decoration reveals Deck’s interest in Far Eastern art, which he collected from the 1870s onwards. This inspiration is particularly evident in the choice of the mallard, often depicted by Hiroshige in his prints. This work is an emblematic example of Théodore Deck’s mastery of the enamel technique, enabling him to achieve great finesse in his work: the bird is depicted with great precision and clarity. The Théodore Deck et des pays du Florival Museum, in Guebwiller, has a dish also made by Deck, decorated with a mallard taking flight in front of a golden sun, which is very similar to another dish in the Marc Maison gallery.