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Lot Essay
Pierre Reymond was among the most celebrated exponents of Limoges enamelling and ran one of the most successful enamel workshops in Limoges in the sixteenth century. His standing in the city was such that he was made consul of Limoges twice, in 1560 and 1567. His client list remains tantalizingly discreet, but he was patronized by some of the greatest collectors of sixteenth century Europe, including both the Queen of France, Catherine de’ Medici, and Anne de Montmorency, Marshall and Constable of France. Reymond must have begun to create polychrome enamel plaques in his teenage years as his first dated work, of 1533, made when he was around 20 years old, was already highly accomplished. By 1540 he had moved onto grisaille enamels and became perhaps the greatest exponent of this technique in which shades of grey were created by adding varying numbers of layers of white.
Depictions of mythological figures such as heroes and gods were a favorite subject among Reymond and his workshop who returned to them in various formats. The depiction of the goddess Juno seated in a chariot alongside putti, for example, is very close to that showing The Triumph of Venus on a smaller scale in a salt cellar at the Louvre (inv. no. MR 2499). A similar composition appears again on the lid of a casket depicting the Triumph of Diana housed in the Taft Museum, Cincinnati (inv. no. 1931.285) also attributed to Reymond.
The decoration of the border surrounding the rim of the foot of the present lot is comparable to that of another ewer attributed to Reymond or his workshop in the Wallace Collection dated to the third quarter of the 16th century (inv. no. C580). Both ewers also feature similar decoration to the underside of the handle with black enamel decorated with gold floral motifs.
Depictions of mythological figures such as heroes and gods were a favorite subject among Reymond and his workshop who returned to them in various formats. The depiction of the goddess Juno seated in a chariot alongside putti, for example, is very close to that showing The Triumph of Venus on a smaller scale in a salt cellar at the Louvre (inv. no. MR 2499). A similar composition appears again on the lid of a casket depicting the Triumph of Diana housed in the Taft Museum, Cincinnati (inv. no. 1931.285) also attributed to Reymond.
The decoration of the border surrounding the rim of the foot of the present lot is comparable to that of another ewer attributed to Reymond or his workshop in the Wallace Collection dated to the third quarter of the 16th century (inv. no. C580). Both ewers also feature similar decoration to the underside of the handle with black enamel decorated with gold floral motifs.