Lot Essay
The form of these ewers, with their lobed bodies and boldly-scrolled handles, is typical of 17th century Italian silver, as are the guilloche and stiff foliate borders, while the ball-and-claw terminal to the handle is based on 16th century designs by Francesco Salviati (1510-1563). The bodies are composed of cailloux d'Egitto, an extremely rare jasper which has been described by Nicholas Penny as 'the colour of coffee into which cream has been partially stirred' (Catalogue of European Sculpture in the Ashmolean Museum, London, 1992, III, p. 201). Each body is formed of numerous panels chosen to present the swirling 'cream' at its best, with the gold mounts forming a cage
A related pair of ormulu-mounted cailloux d'Egitto ewers, which have been described as English, circa 1740, is in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Penny, op. cit., nos. 604 and 605), but close comparison with the present pair reveals certain fundamental differences in the decoration. The form is similar, but the Ashmolean pair have male and female masks enclosed by rocaille, a motif which also appears at the top of the stems and on the handles. Similarly, the floral garlands which entwine the body are much coarser than those on the present pair, and are typical of decoration on English rococo silver of the 1730s and 40s. By way of contrast, the garland on the present pair of ewers are much more finely chased, as are the shellwork bands at the rims; these together with their crisply delineated folded ribbons and the overall compactness of the design with its emphasis on line rather than ornament, are typical of the neo-classicism of the end of the 17th century. Certain differences in the techniques used on the two pairs of ewers are also of interest: for example, the mounts on the present pair are all chased, while those on the Ashmolean pair are cast. It is tempting to suggest that the Ashmolean ewers may be a pendant pair to the present examples, made approximately fifty years later.
These ewers are recorded in the inventory of plate, The Property of Sir Philip Sassoon, Bt., 25 Park Lane, W.1. compiled by Crichton Brothers of 22 Old Bond Street, London, W.1. January 1930
A related pair of ormulu-mounted cailloux d'Egitto ewers, which have been described as English, circa 1740, is in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Penny, op. cit., nos. 604 and 605), but close comparison with the present pair reveals certain fundamental differences in the decoration. The form is similar, but the Ashmolean pair have male and female masks enclosed by rocaille, a motif which also appears at the top of the stems and on the handles. Similarly, the floral garlands which entwine the body are much coarser than those on the present pair, and are typical of decoration on English rococo silver of the 1730s and 40s. By way of contrast, the garland on the present pair of ewers are much more finely chased, as are the shellwork bands at the rims; these together with their crisply delineated folded ribbons and the overall compactness of the design with its emphasis on line rather than ornament, are typical of the neo-classicism of the end of the 17th century. Certain differences in the techniques used on the two pairs of ewers are also of interest: for example, the mounts on the present pair are all chased, while those on the Ashmolean pair are cast. It is tempting to suggest that the Ashmolean ewers may be a pendant pair to the present examples, made approximately fifty years later.
These ewers are recorded in the inventory of plate, The Property of Sir Philip Sassoon, Bt., 25 Park Lane, W.1. compiled by Crichton Brothers of 22 Old Bond Street, London, W.1. January 1930