A PAIR OF FRENCH ORMOLU AND PORPHYRY SIX-LIGHT CANDELABRA
A PAIR OF FRENCH ORMOLU AND PORPHYRY SIX-LIGHT CANDELABRA

OF EMPIRE STYLE, LATE 19TH CENTURY

Details
A PAIR OF FRENCH ORMOLU AND PORPHYRY SIX-LIGHT CANDELABRA
OF EMPIRE STYLE, LATE 19TH CENTURY
En suite with the previous lot, each modelled with a swan issuing an 'S'-scrolled acanthus-wrapped stem surmounted by a candelabrum, on a rectangular stepped porphyry-veneered plinth
28 in. (71 cm.) high (2)

Brought to you by

Caitlin Yates
Caitlin Yates

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Lot Essay

These candelabra date from the revival of the Empire style at the end of the 19th century. Swans frequently appeared in Greek and Roman art as attributes for Apollo, Leda and sometimes Zeus. Here, as a support for candelabra, the swan represents Apollo, the sun god, who conquers darkness. As an emblem of Roman iconography Percier and Fontaine adopted the swan as a central ornamental motif in their architectural glorification of Napoleon Bonaparte. Their designs were translated into furniture and objects by the Jacob Frères and Pierre-Philippe Thomire who supplied a set of swan sconces for the Tuileries in 1810 (O. Nouvel-Kammerer, Symbols of Power: Napoleon and the Art of the Empire Style 1800 - 1815, New York, 2007, pp. 228-245).

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