A very fine gilt bronze, cloisonné enamel and porcelain holy water stoup

A very fine gilt bronze, cloisonné enamel and porcelain holy water stoup
French, Late 19th Century
Height 54cm, width 34cm, depth 9cm

This beautiful piece is an ormolu, cloisonné enamel and porcelain stoup, a specific type of vessel for holy water often found inside the entrances to Catholic churches. Made in France in the late nineteenth century, it features in the centre an oval-shaped porcelain plaque that takes for its subject the 'Madonna della Seggiola' by Italian Renaissance master Raphael.

The image of the Virgin mother and child in the centre is after one of Raphael's most beloved and well-known paintings, currently housed in the Palazzo Pitti, Florence. The image is set in a gilt bronze frame with beautiful cloisonné enamel decoration, and the stoup is topped with a cross and two angels holding the 'arma Christi'. At the base of the piece is a tridacna, a clam shaped pendant, which is framed with reeds and supported by putti above a phylactery engraved 'Ave Maria'.

Artist/Maker: (after) Raphael