Lot Essay
François-Pascal Philippine, fils ainé, active at Sèvres as a painter 1778-1791, 1802-1825
Charles-Christian-Marie Durosey, active at Sèvres as a gilder 1802-1830
The present pair of vases were entered in the inventory of the Sèvres retail gallery on 28 février 1816 (Registre Vv1, folio 60 verso, no. 61) where they were described as "2 Vases fuseaux 3 form Mozaique d'or en malachite perles et autre pierres brillantes certier en or relief" and the total cost per vase noted at 665 francs:
Pate 20 francs
Fond Philippine jne
Dorure ornement relief Durosey 18 francs
_____ garniture 1re Dorure Philippine
or du bronzes 13 francs
Or ou platine 12 francs
Peinture des ornements, Philippine Jne 400 francs
________ des figures, par " francs
________ des paysages, par " francs
________ des fleurs, par " francs
Brunissage à l'effet Durosey 18 francs
__________ à plat 6 francs
TOTAL des frais directs 484 francs
Faux frais 121 francs
Montage et garniture en bronze 60 francs
Prix de fabrication 665 francs
Prix de vente 600 francs
According to the factory archives (Vbb5, folio 14), the vases were sold to "la grande aumonerie de France pour les oblèats" on September 20, 1817 at a cost of 1200 francs for the pair - a loss to the factory of 130 francs on the cost of production. Sèvres is known to have sold pieces at a slight loss when there were problems with the production. This being the case, it is possible that the condition problems noted are original to the piece and the restoration work done at Sèvres prior to the sale.
Regardless of the exact cost or selling price of the present pair, there can be no doubt as to their quality or the attention to detail paid them by Philippine and Durosey in their manufacture. The ciselure of the the mounts - the richness of the beards as contrasted with the faces and the lobed background behind each head, the screws holding the handles in place disguised as rosettes centering husks, the band of laurel separating the paired masks - and the white enamel highlights outlining each trellis section to give the impression of beveled stone and enriching each 'gem' to give it depth and brilliance are a testament to the workmanship produced by the Sèvres factory in the early years of the 19th century.
Cf. Brigitte Ducrot, Porcelaines et terres de Sèvres, Musée national du chateau de Compiègne, Paris, 1993, fig. 9 for a pair of agate-ground vases of the same shape and size as the present example, dated 1806 and in the collection of the chateau and for reference to another similar pair in the collection of the Grand Trianon, Versailles; also Antoinette Faÿ-Hallé and Barbar Mundt, Porcelain of the Nineteenth Century, New York, 1983, figs. 12-14
Charles-Christian-Marie Durosey, active at Sèvres as a gilder 1802-1830
The present pair of vases were entered in the inventory of the Sèvres retail gallery on 28 février 1816 (Registre Vv1, folio 60 verso, no. 61) where they were described as "2 Vases fuseaux 3 form Mozaique d'or en malachite perles et autre pierres brillantes certier en or relief" and the total cost per vase noted at 665 francs:
Pate 20 francs
Fond Philippine jne
Dorure ornement relief Durosey 18 francs
_____ garniture 1re Dorure Philippine
or du bronzes 13 francs
Or ou platine 12 francs
Peinture des ornements, Philippine Jne 400 francs
________ des figures, par " francs
________ des paysages, par " francs
________ des fleurs, par " francs
Brunissage à l'effet Durosey 18 francs
__________ à plat 6 francs
TOTAL des frais directs 484 francs
Faux frais 121 francs
Montage et garniture en bronze 60 francs
Prix de fabrication 665 francs
Prix de vente 600 francs
According to the factory archives (Vbb5, folio 14), the vases were sold to "la grande aumonerie de France pour les oblèats" on September 20, 1817 at a cost of 1200 francs for the pair - a loss to the factory of 130 francs on the cost of production. Sèvres is known to have sold pieces at a slight loss when there were problems with the production. This being the case, it is possible that the condition problems noted are original to the piece and the restoration work done at Sèvres prior to the sale.
Regardless of the exact cost or selling price of the present pair, there can be no doubt as to their quality or the attention to detail paid them by Philippine and Durosey in their manufacture. The ciselure of the the mounts - the richness of the beards as contrasted with the faces and the lobed background behind each head, the screws holding the handles in place disguised as rosettes centering husks, the band of laurel separating the paired masks - and the white enamel highlights outlining each trellis section to give the impression of beveled stone and enriching each 'gem' to give it depth and brilliance are a testament to the workmanship produced by the Sèvres factory in the early years of the 19th century.
Cf. Brigitte Ducrot, Porcelaines et terres de Sèvres, Musée national du chateau de Compiègne, Paris, 1993, fig. 9 for a pair of agate-ground vases of the same shape and size as the present example, dated 1806 and in the collection of the chateau and for reference to another similar pair in the collection of the Grand Trianon, Versailles; also Antoinette Faÿ-Hallé and Barbar Mundt, Porcelain of the Nineteenth Century, New York, 1983, figs. 12-14