CIRCA 1850

Details

A PAIR OF NAPOLEON III PATINATED BRONZE FOUR-LIGHT LAMPADAIRES
CIRCA 1850
Each surmounted by a baron's coronet, the tapering cylindrical glazed lantern above a baluster-shaped shaft on four foliate-clasped scrolling supports; with 'SGDG' patent
109 in. (277 cm.) high; 23 in (58 in.) wide

Provenance

Baron James de Rothschild (1792-1868), commissioned for 19 rue Laffitte, Paris and thence by descent until sold Christie's, Paris, 5 November 2014, lot 138.

Literature

P. Prevost-Marcilhacy, 'Un hôtel au goût du jour: l'hôtel de James de Rothschild', Gazette des Beaux-Arts, no. 1506-1507, July-August 1994, p. 42, fig. 7.
P. Prevost-Marcilhacy, Les Rothschild. Bâtisseurs et mécènes, Paris, 1995, p. 55.

Special notice

This lot will be removed to Christie’s Park Royal. Christie’s will inform you if the lot has been sent offsite. Our removal and storage of the lot is subject to the terms and conditions of storage which can be found at Christies.com/storage and our fees for storage are set out in the table below - these will apply whether the lot remains with Christie’s or is removed elsewhere. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Christie’s Park Royal. All collections from Christie’s Park Royal will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com. If the lot remains at Christie’s it will be available for collection on any working day 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lots are not available for collection at weekends. This lot has been imported from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Charlotte Young Associate Director, Specialist

cyoung@christies.com +44 (0)20 7389 2730

Lot Essay

This impressive pair of patinated bronze lampadaires were commissioned to adorn the steps of James de Rothschild's Parisian hôtel, 19 rue Laffitte (formerly rue d'Artois) in the most affluent and modern part of Paris. James was the son of Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744-1812) and founded the Paris branch of the Rothschild bank. He managed the fortune of King Louis-Philippe and was considered the wealthiest man in France at the time. De Rothschild purchased the hôtel at rue Laffitte on 10 December 1818 but later in 1836 decided to completely rebuild the property in the Gothic and Renaissance style employing the architect Henri Duponchel. The result was incredibly opulent and luxurious. His nephew Lionel wrote to his fiancée Charlotte that 'The ground floors will be finished by the end of the month and will rival any palace[...]The first floor, the daily habitation is nearly as splendid, so much gold that for the first few days one is quite dazzled’. He held weekly soirees entertaining literary, musical and artistic figures of the time including Honoré de Balzac, Heinrich Heine and Giacomo Puccini. Heine described the hôtel, which would remain in the Rothschild family until it was demolished in 1967 as 'the Versailles of a financial potentate'.
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‌In France, 'SGDG patent' was a legal notice releasing the State from any responsibility for the effective functioning of the patented device, decreed under Louis-Philippe on 5 July 1844.

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