ATTRIBUTED TO FERDINAND BARBEDIENNE, PARIS, CIRCA 1880

Following the 1860 French imperial campagne de Chine, immense caches of enamels from the Summer Palace (Yuanming Yuan), Beijing, were placed on public display at the Tuileries, after which a personal selection made by Empress Eugènie was re-housed in thematically remodelled rooms at Fontainebleau. Here furnishings in the Chinese fashion were supplied by French makers to house, complement, and even repurpose the collection to suit Western tastes. The chief among these artisans was Ferdinand Barbedienne, who notably adapted the cover of a Qianlong incense burner and an Kangxi vase (both spoils from the Summer Palace) in order to create a three-metre high chandelier of lantern-form with swirling ormolu candlearms (extant at Fontainebleau, inv. F. 1324 C).
The present chandelier is almost certainly a derivative of this original franco-chinoise creation. Clear parallels can be seen in the form, including the square canopy suspending a stepped enamel dome with spiralling candle arms, as well as the decoration, such the presence of hanging shou roundels. Creating a chinoiserie language of his own, the present chandelier further recalls motifs found within Barbedienne’s vast oeuvre. The perched peacocks and articulated hanging tassels seen on this lot are nearly identical to those which also appear together on an ormolu-mounted cloisonné enamel jardinière signed Barbedienne and sold Christie’s, London, 6 March 2014, lot 188 (£52,500, with premium).