Lot Essay
These scrolling candlesticks were conceived in the 'picturesque' Dutch Louis XV style of the 1750s. This style was strongly influenced by French examples. Indeed, the French court style of Louis XV was greatly admired in Holland throughout the 18th Century, but particularly in The Hague, where the Stadholder's court and foreign embassies were based and where a large number of Huguenot craftsmen had fled after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685. Among these immigrant craftsmen were several silversmiths, whose names appear in the eedboek from the beginning of the 18th century, such as Richard Musseau (registered in 1702), Jacob Potier (registered in 1718), Jean Rostang (registered in 1711) and Jaques Tuillier (registered in 1701). (E. Voet, Merken van Haagsche Goud-en Zilversmeden, The Hague 1941, pp. 91, 97, 103 and 117)
Of the Dutch interest during the 18th Century in all fields of the French decorative arts, we are perhaps best informed about the interest in furniture. French furniture was in fact imported to Holland in such large amounts that it posed a threat to local cabinet-makers. Indeed in 1771, the guild of furniture-makers of The Hague complained to the city council demanding ban on this influx of furniture from France. As a result however, numerous Dutch cabinet-makers tried to emulate the fashionable French style. (R.J. Baarsen, 'French furniture in Amsterdam in 1771', Furniture History Society Journal 29 (1993), pp. 157 and 158))
Whether or not the French current in silvermaking developed similarily has not yet convincingly been established. Virtually no French silver has remained in old Dutch collections and the sparse documentary evidence suggests that French silver played a less significant role in prominent Dutch interiors than, for instance, French furniture. The exceptional collection of the wealthy Amsterdam collector Gerrit Braamcamp (1669-1771) however, contained several costly French silver items, such as a large silver dinner service by the the celebrated Paris silversmith François Thomas Germain (1726-1791), which was described as a 'Koninklijk Tafelservies van zilver voor 18 personen' (C. Bille, De tempel der kunst of het kabinet van den heer Braamcamp', vol. 1, Amsterdam 1961, p. 54)
The French style in Dutch silver therefore probably developed through the spread of French printed designs of silver items rather than the items themselves. An important contribution towards this style may also have come from influential Dutch silver-dealers who excercised a degree of patronage over a number of silversmiths, not unlike the fashion-conscience Parisian marchand-merciers. Several celebrated silversmiths worked exclusively for these dealers, who probably supplied the models. In the case of the Amsterdam silversmith Valentijn Casper Beumke (1726-1782), for instance, it has been established that he only worked for the firm of Jacques Peirolet (1737-1797), who occasionally employed the dealer's stamp 'IP' at the end of the 18th Century. Whether or not Burgers maintained a similar relationship with a dealer has not been ascertained, although the elegant detachable nozzles of this pair of candlesticks, which were clearly supplied two years later, may indicate that a dealer acted as an intermediary. (R.J. Baarsen, Meubelen en zilver op de tentoonstelling 'Edele Eenvoud, Neo-classicisme in Nederland 1765-1800', Frans Halsmuseum, Haarlem 1989, p. 120 and note 18)
Very little is in fact known about Jan Willem Burgers, except that he was registered in the municipal eedboek in 1739 and that he became deken and keurmeester of the guild in 1769. His oeuvre however demonstrates his audacity and talent and probably gained him much acclaim in fashionable Hague circles. The present pair of candlesticks is among his most accomplished pieces and relates to two further pairs in the Haags Gemeentemuseum, dated 1761 and 1767, which are illustated in B. Jansen's Catalogus van Haagse Zilverwerken, The Hague, 1978, pp. 53, 58 and 107. A related pair of two-branch wall-lights by Burgers was sold anonymously in these Rooms, 27 May 1997, lot 450. (NGL 415.152) see illustration
Of the Dutch interest during the 18th Century in all fields of the French decorative arts, we are perhaps best informed about the interest in furniture. French furniture was in fact imported to Holland in such large amounts that it posed a threat to local cabinet-makers. Indeed in 1771, the guild of furniture-makers of The Hague complained to the city council demanding ban on this influx of furniture from France. As a result however, numerous Dutch cabinet-makers tried to emulate the fashionable French style. (R.J. Baarsen, 'French furniture in Amsterdam in 1771', Furniture History Society Journal 29 (1993), pp. 157 and 158))
Whether or not the French current in silvermaking developed similarily has not yet convincingly been established. Virtually no French silver has remained in old Dutch collections and the sparse documentary evidence suggests that French silver played a less significant role in prominent Dutch interiors than, for instance, French furniture. The exceptional collection of the wealthy Amsterdam collector Gerrit Braamcamp (1669-1771) however, contained several costly French silver items, such as a large silver dinner service by the the celebrated Paris silversmith François Thomas Germain (1726-1791), which was described as a 'Koninklijk Tafelservies van zilver voor 18 personen' (C. Bille, De tempel der kunst of het kabinet van den heer Braamcamp', vol. 1, Amsterdam 1961, p. 54)
The French style in Dutch silver therefore probably developed through the spread of French printed designs of silver items rather than the items themselves. An important contribution towards this style may also have come from influential Dutch silver-dealers who excercised a degree of patronage over a number of silversmiths, not unlike the fashion-conscience Parisian marchand-merciers. Several celebrated silversmiths worked exclusively for these dealers, who probably supplied the models. In the case of the Amsterdam silversmith Valentijn Casper Beumke (1726-1782), for instance, it has been established that he only worked for the firm of Jacques Peirolet (1737-1797), who occasionally employed the dealer's stamp 'IP' at the end of the 18th Century. Whether or not Burgers maintained a similar relationship with a dealer has not been ascertained, although the elegant detachable nozzles of this pair of candlesticks, which were clearly supplied two years later, may indicate that a dealer acted as an intermediary. (R.J. Baarsen, Meubelen en zilver op de tentoonstelling 'Edele Eenvoud, Neo-classicisme in Nederland 1765-1800', Frans Halsmuseum, Haarlem 1989, p. 120 and note 18)
Very little is in fact known about Jan Willem Burgers, except that he was registered in the municipal eedboek in 1739 and that he became deken and keurmeester of the guild in 1769. His oeuvre however demonstrates his audacity and talent and probably gained him much acclaim in fashionable Hague circles. The present pair of candlesticks is among his most accomplished pieces and relates to two further pairs in the Haags Gemeentemuseum, dated 1761 and 1767, which are illustated in B. Jansen's Catalogus van Haagse Zilverwerken, The Hague, 1978, pp. 53, 58 and 107. A related pair of two-branch wall-lights by Burgers was sold anonymously in these Rooms, 27 May 1997, lot 450. (NGL 415.152) see illustration