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Lot Essay
The design for these monumental jardinières may be attributed to Edouard Lièvre (d.1886) based upon the distinctive elephant-head feet, which are found in his iconic japonisme oeuvre, particularly on a superb garniture de cheminée conceived by Lièvre in 1875 and on an aquarium of the same date (Connaissance des Arts, No. 228, 'Edouard Lièvre', Paris, 2004, pp. 28, 31 and 34). Bejeweled and exotic elephant heads regularly appear in Lièvre's designs, often heading support elements, for example on marble-topped stand whose design was executed by the fondeur Maison Marnyhac, a contemporary of Barbedienne, for the haut-luxe retailer L'Escalier de Cristal (op.cit., pp. 6 and 26), another stand with strikingly similar dual-patination sold Christie's, New York, 21 October 2008, lot 272.
The resurgence of interest in China and specifically cloisonné enamel works was was fueled in France by Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie. By February 1861, immense caches of enamels were on display to the public at the Tuileries in Paris and then in 1863 at Fontainebleau where rooms were remodeled to complement the exhibits with furnishings in the Chinese taste supplied by French makers.
The resurgence of interest in China and specifically cloisonné enamel works was was fueled in France by Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie. By February 1861, immense caches of enamels were on display to the public at the Tuileries in Paris and then in 1863 at Fontainebleau where rooms were remodeled to complement the exhibits with furnishings in the Chinese taste supplied by French makers.