20th Century Art Deco Crystal Ashtray with Bas-Relief Lion by Renè Lalique, France

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Item description:
Spectacular, extremely rare crystal ashtray, carved in bas-relief with a lion's head, treated with acids and signed by … Read more Item description:
Spectacular, extremely rare crystal ashtray, carved in bas-relief with a lion's head, treated with acids and signed by the Lalique France factory with a diamond point, dating back to the early decades of the 20th century. The item was made in full Art Deco style and is of the highest artistic quality, with a large amount of crystal, thick and very heavy in comparison to its size.

Useful information for evaluating the object:
Everyone knows the value of René Lalique's crystal pieces. An internet search shows that the four highest results for his glassware range from €190,000 to €307,000, plus auction fees of 25-30%, just to give an idea of the importance of this artist's work. Going into more detail, we find that ashtrays similar to ours are offered for sale or auction at prices ranging from a minimum of €400-500 to almost €1,000, depending on the size and craftsmanship of the individual item.

Information about the artist and/or manufacturer:
At the age of twelve, he won first prize in drawing at the historic Lycée Turgot in Paris. At sixteen, he began an apprenticeship at the workshop of jeweler Louis Aucoc. After taking an advanced course at Sydenham Art College in London, he returned to Paris where he began designing jewelry for renowned houses such as Aucoc, Cartier, Hamelin, and Boucheron. Visiting the universal exhibitions in Paris, he was particularly impressed by contemporary Japanese art, which was one of his most important sources of inspiration. From 1882, he worked as a freelance designer for various companies, before setting up his own business in 1885. He had already been experimenting with glass for several years and used this material, cut, chiselled, fused, or enamelled, he created "semi-precious" stones that he set in his jewellery and tried his hand at combining it with other materials (especially metal and glass) or creating special objects such as perfume bottles, which until then had been conceived as anonymous containers and, from then on, as emblems of luxury accessible to an ever-growing number of people. The colorless glass vases revealed their contours only through the light that, in contrast to the density of the pressed material, shone through, highlighting their design. At the same time as the industrial production of pressed and molded pieces, Lalique also created unique pieces on commission. International recognition came in 1900 at the Universal Exhibition, where, among other pieces, a dragonfly-shaped jewel commissioned by magnate Calouste Gulbenkian and worn by Sarah Bernhardt was exhibited, ensuring its immediate success. The original synthesis of plant, animal, and human forms in Art Nouveau resulted in the creation of pieces made by assembling different materials (glass, metal, enamel, ivory, horn) and applying a wide variety of techniques. Lalique thus revived the tradition but, relying on the originality of the design and the quality of the workmanship rather than the value of the materials used, he demonstrated that art and industry were not incompatible, provided that quality was respected. After the Great War, the public seemed to have lost interest in the colorful and imaginative objects that had determined Lalique's success: he therefore decided to convert to the neoclassical and geometric lines of Art Deco, seeking to introduce the concept of luxury into everyday objects such as plates, vases, candlesticks, and even car radiator caps, which, being sculptures in all but name, soon became a hallmark of elegance. In this context, he was also commissioned to decorate architectural structures such as the dining room of the ocean liner Normandie, glass skylights, and fountains. His work was interrupted during World War II and ended with his death in 1945. This piece has an attribution mark,
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