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Lot Essay
With its monumental size, use of luxurious materials, quality of execution and originality of subject, this exceptional vase illustrates the tradition of excellence and the timeless character of French taste in the nineteenth century.
THE EXHIBITION OF 1834
The eighth edition of its type, the Public Exhibition of the Products of French Industry of 1834 featured 2447 exhibitors for 1786 prizes. Thanks to a drawing illustrated in the work of Stéphane Flachat, L’Industrie. Exposition de 1834, Paris, p. 38 et p. 46, pl. IV-3, it is very probable that the present lot was presented at this exhibition by Jean-François Denière (1774-1866). Denière, a bronzier of renown, exhibited more than forty-one pieces and distinguished himself thanks to this impressive vase and his special capacity to unite in his work 'toutes les écoles, grecques, romaine, Renaissance, Louis XIV, Rocaille'.
Denière’s stand impressed critics, as demonstrated by Stéphane Flachat's comment (Flachat, op. cit.): 'Nous avons vu les pièces sortant des moules, et à la netteté des arêtes, à la sûreté et à la délicatesse des formes, nous avons pu mesurer l’habilité du fondeur, et vérifier l’opinion à laquelle nous portaient toutes nos recherches, celle que la fonderie et la bonne composition du métal sont la base principale de l’industrie des bronzes'.
A TALENTED DUO: JEAN-FRANCOIS DENIERE (1774-1866) AND ADRIEN-LOUIS-MARIE CAVELIER (1785-1867)
Jean-François Denière was one of the most illustrious bronziers of the first half of the 19th century. Together with François Mathelin in 1797, he formed a prosperous company which employed more than 200 craftsmen during the Empire, a number that only grew until it reached 400 in the reign of Louis-Philippe. Supplier to the Duchesse de Berry but also to King Louis-Philippe, he worked for several notable foreigners like the Duke of Hamilton, Ferdinand VII of Spain, Wihelm II of Hesse, Willem II of the Netherlands, and Tsar Alexander II of Russia. Between 1817 and 1818 the company supplied a large proportion of the bronzes for the decoration of the White House in Washington.
Denière stood out several times during these famous Exhibitions of the Products of French Industry. In 1820 he presented the mounts of the cradle of the Duke of Bordeaux which won the silver medal. Three years later a wonderful pair of tables from the Duke of Hamilton’s collection, today preserved in the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto (inv. 2806) won the gold prize. He reached the apogee of his career in 1827 when he was honoured with the knight’s cross of the Légion d’Honneur. Jean-François Denière knew perfectly how to adapt to the fluctuations of taste and the multitude of genres that characterised the 19th century. A prominent representative of the Egyptian revival style like Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1751-1843) under the influence of Baron Vivant-Denon, he was also the creator of works in the Renaissance and rococo styles, drawing inspiration from the large repertoire of previous centuries.
Although conceived by the Maison Denière, the fabulous of design for the present vase is the work of the discreet but no less talented Adrien-Louis-Marie Cavelier (1785-1867) who realised models for the great manufactories like those of Denière. As early as 1836 Baron Charles Dupin, member of the Institut de France and author of a report of the central jury on the products of French industry from this famous exhibition of 1834 wrote: 'Tous les bronzes que M. Denière offre cette année, tous ceux qui depuis un temps considérable ajoutent aux décorations intérieures imaginées pour les châteaux des Tuileries et de Neuilly, sont exécutés d’après les dessins de cet habiles artiste. Il est très digne de la médaille d’argent'. Dupin wrote that Cavelier was 'humble, modeste mais laborieux' and was striving 'sans relâche, par ses productions à enrichir les diverses industries de sujets et de formes puisés aux saines traditions' (Dupin, op. cit.).
His reputation led to numerous commissions over more than fifty years including in particular the design for the cradle of the King of Rome executed in 1811 by Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot (1763-1852) and currently preserved in the Kunsthistorisches Museum of Vienna (inv. Schatzkammer, WS XIV 28).
THE ORIGINS OF THE MODEL
We know that a very closely related model to the present lot was presented by Denière during this exhibition and designed by Cavelier was created in 1826, probably for King Ferdinand VII of Spain (1784-1833) on the occasion of his marriage in 1829 to his niece Marie Christine of Bourbon-Sicily (1806-1878). Between 1826 and 1830 Denière delivered a wonderful suite comprising at least six of these presentation vases which can today be seen in the large dining room of the Royal Palace of Madrid. Surmounted by the crown of Spain they feature Sèvres porcelain plaques with painted decoration inspired by contemporary canvases illustrating the history of France and Spain. In addition they rest on pedestals identical to the base of this vase, but which are veneered in amboyna, enriched with ormolu mounts and the cypher of Ferdinand VII.
With its monumental size, use of luxurious materials, quality of execution and originality of subject, this exceptional vase illustrates the tradition of excellence and the timeless character of French taste in the nineteenth century.
THE EXHIBITION OF 1834
The eighth edition of its type, the Public Exhibition of the Products of French Industry of 1834 featured 2447 exhibitors for 1786 prizes. Thanks to a drawing illustrated in the work of Stéphane Flachat, L’Industrie. Exposition de 1834, Paris, p. 38 et p. 46, pl. IV-3, it is very probable that the present lot was presented at this exhibition by Jean-François Denière (1774-1866). Denière, a bronzier of renown, exhibited more than forty-one pieces and distinguished himself thanks to this impressive vase and his special capacity to unite in his work 'toutes les écoles, grecques, romaine, Renaissance, Louis XIV, Rocaille'.
Denière’s stand impressed critics, as demonstrated by Stéphane Flachat's comment (Flachat, op. cit.): 'Nous avons vu les pièces sortant des moules, et à la netteté des arêtes, à la sûreté et à la délicatesse des formes, nous avons pu mesurer l’habilité du fondeur, et vérifier l’opinion à laquelle nous portaient toutes nos recherches, celle que la fonderie et la bonne composition du métal sont la base principale de l’industrie des bronzes'.
A TALENTED DUO: JEAN-FRANCOIS DENIERE (1774-1866) AND ADRIEN-LOUIS-MARIE CAVELIER (1785-1867)
Jean-François Denière was one of the most illustrious bronziers of the first half of the 19th century. Together with François Mathelin in 1797, he formed a prosperous company which employed more than 200 craftsmen during the Empire, a number that only grew until it reached 400 in the reign of Louis-Philippe. Supplier to the Duchesse de Berry but also to King Louis-Philippe, he worked for several notable foreigners like the Duke of Hamilton, Ferdinand VII of Spain, Wihelm II of Hesse, Willem II of the Netherlands, and Tsar Alexander II of Russia. Between 1817 and 1818 the company supplied a large proportion of the bronzes for the decoration of the White House in Washington.
Denière stood out several times during these famous Exhibitions of the Products of French Industry. In 1820 he presented the mounts of the cradle of the Duke of Bordeaux which won the silver medal. Three years later a wonderful pair of tables from the Duke of Hamilton’s collection, today preserved in the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto (inv. 2806) won the gold prize. He reached the apogee of his career in 1827 when he was honoured with the knight’s cross of the Légion d’Honneur. Jean-François Denière knew perfectly how to adapt to the fluctuations of taste and the multitude of genres that characterised the 19th century. A prominent representative of the Egyptian revival style like Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1751-1843) under the influence of Baron Vivant-Denon, he was also the creator of works in the Renaissance and rococo styles, drawing inspiration from the large repertoire of previous centuries.
Although conceived by the Maison Denière, the fabulous of design for the present vase is the work of the discreet but no less talented Adrien-Louis-Marie Cavelier (1785-1867) who realised models for the great manufactories like those of Denière. As early as 1836 Baron Charles Dupin, member of the Institut de France and author of a report of the central jury on the products of French industry from this famous exhibition of 1834 wrote: 'Tous les bronzes que M. Denière offre cette année, tous ceux qui depuis un temps considérable ajoutent aux décorations intérieures imaginées pour les châteaux des Tuileries et de Neuilly, sont exécutés d’après les dessins de cet habiles artiste. Il est très digne de la médaille d’argent'. Dupin wrote that Cavelier was 'humble, modeste mais laborieux' and was striving 'sans relâche, par ses productions à enrichir les diverses industries de sujets et de formes puisés aux saines traditions' (Dupin, op. cit.).
His reputation led to numerous commissions over more than fifty years including in particular the design for the cradle of the King of Rome executed in 1811 by Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot (1763-1852) and currently preserved in the Kunsthistorisches Museum of Vienna (inv. Schatzkammer, WS XIV 28).
THE ORIGINS OF THE MODEL
We know that a very closely related model to the present lot was presented by Denière during this exhibition and designed by Cavelier was created in 1826, probably for King Ferdinand VII of Spain (1784-1833) on the occasion of his marriage in 1829 to his niece Marie Christine of Bourbon-Sicily (1806-1878). Between 1826 and 1830 Denière delivered a wonderful suite comprising at least six of these presentation vases which can today be seen in the large dining room of the Royal Palace of Madrid. Surmounted by the crown of Spain they feature Sèvres porcelain plaques with painted decoration inspired by contemporary canvases illustrating the history of France and Spain. In addition they rest on pedestals identical to the base of this vase, but which are veneered in amboyna, enriched with ormolu mounts and the cypher of Ferdinand VII.