Pair of French Napoleon III Louis XVI Revival Ormolu Caryatid and Crystal Girandoles in the Manner of Baccarat or Saint‑Louis

Details

Description

An imposing and finely made pair of mid‑19th‑century French girandoles in the Louis XVI Revival taste, each modeled as a … Read more An imposing and finely made pair of mid‑19th‑century French girandoles in the Louis XVI Revival taste, each modeled as a standing classical caryatid in richly gilded bronze supporting a tiered bouquet of cut crystal. The bronze mounts were cast in sections and entirely hand finished—expertly chased with a subtle hammer‑worked texture that creates a sophisticated matte‑and‑burnished play of light across the drapery and skin. The figures rise to a circular ormolu platform that anchors the crystal superstructure; the disc‑shaped mounting plate retains an indecipherable hand‑engraved workshop inscription at the center, typical of Parisian assembly practice of the period.

From the platform spring six spiral, rope‑twist crystal branches, their clarity and gentle aquamarine cast characteristic of France’s premier cristalleries. Each branch terminates in a tulip‑lipped candle cup set above a scalloped, wheel‑cut drip pan and dressed with long, polished icicle prisms that heighten the sparkle. The caryatids stand on molded‑and‑cut crystal socles over circular ormolu bases with beaded and laurel borders in the neoclassical manner. The overall composition reflects the high style of the Second Empire, when Paris bronziers routinely mounted Baccarat and Saint‑Louis crystal for elite retailers such as L’Escalier de Cristal. The design, cutting vocabulary, and quality strongly accord with that production; the crystal was very likely supplied by one of those leading houses. See less