Magnificent French Gilt-Bronze Figural Centrepiece by Christofle

#18258: Magnificent French Gilt-Bronze Figural Centrepiece by Christofle
By Christofle (French, active from 1830)
French, 19th century
Height 36cm, width 67cm, depth 55cm
This sumptuous centrepiece is conceived as a celebration of the hunt and the river, its shaped bowl raised high above a spreading base heaped with putti, game and foliage. It is a splendid example of the Louis XV revival taste that flourished in France in the second half of the 19th century, when the great Parisian maisons returned to the exuberant, naturalistic vocabulary of the Rococo. The piece was produced by Christofle, the most celebrated French silversmithing house of the age, and it demonstrates the virtuoso gilt bronze casting and crisp, refined chasing for which the firm was renowned.
At the summit sits an oval bowl with a shaped, undulating rim, fitted with a removable metal liner for use. The bowl is cradled within a pierced gilt bronze frame of scrolling acanthus, flowering swags and tasselled drapery, punctuated at either end by a serenely modelled female mask crowned with a shell. Foliate handles rise from the sides, lending the upper section a sense of lightness above the sculptural mass below.
The bowl is borne on a spreading pedestal peopled by plump putti, who recline and clamber amid foliage, fruiting garlands and rockwork. One steadies a plain Rococo cartouche, left blank to receive an armorial or monogram, while his companions turn and gesture around the stem, giving the whole a lively, circling movement typical of the finest Rococo design.
The triangular base is a tour de force of naturalistic modelling. Its incurved sides are set with oval relief medallions of putti at the pleasures of the chase and the river, sounding a horn, drawing bows, casting nets and rowing among the reeds, while the corners are heaped with finely rendered trophies of dead game: birds with outspread wings, fish and oak foliage, all gathered above bold, scrolled feet. The naturalism extends to the smallest details, down to the veined oak leaves and the feathers of the fallen birds.
Throughout, the contrast of warm, matt and burnished gilding across the modelled surfaces heightens the play of light and demonstrates the technical mastery for which Christofle was internationally admired.
The base is signed 'CHRISTOFLE & Cie', and the liner carries the Christofle maker's mark and the number 581420, confirming the piece as a product of one of the most important names in 19th-century French metalwork.
A spirited essay in Rococo naturalism and consummate casting, this centrepiece makes an imposing statement on any grand dining table or console.
$67,500