A Napoleon III electroplated centrepiece

BY CHRISTOFLE & CIE, CIRCA 1865

Details

A Napoleon III electroplated centrepiece
By Christofle & Cie, Circa 1865
The oviform tazza with pierced sides above a cartouche-shaped support centred by a pair of foxes felling a rooster, above a pierced rocaille-cast base flanked by trailing oak branches, the tazza impressed with CHRISTOFLE beneath the oval company stamp, the base stamped 119955
21in. (53.3cm.) high

Lot Essay

A related centrepiece was shown at the 1851 Crystal Palace Exhibition and is illustrated in Henri Bouilhet, 150 Ans D'Orfèvrerie, Paris, 1981, p. 67.

In 1863 Maximilien de Habsburg, Emperor of Mexico ordered 4,938 pieces of silverware including a centrepiece incorporating designs similar to that of the present lot, which is currently housed, in part, at the Museo Nacional de Historia, Mexico City. (see The Second Empire Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1978, pp.129-130.)

See previous lot for a note on the firm of Christofle & Cie.

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