Modernist French Silver Plate Horse Knife Rests-Set of Twelve

Details

Description

Set of Twelve Silvered Metal Equestrian Knife Rests
Mid-century Modern

A charming and well-modelled set of twelve knife rests, each … Read more Set of Twelve Silvered Metal Equestrian Knife Rests
Mid-century Modern

A charming and well-modelled set of twelve knife rests, each cast in silvered metal in the form of a galloping horse. The group depict the horse in a classically elongated full gallop, body stretched horizontal, all four legs extended, and the head thrust forward with alert expression and open mouth. Mane and tail are rendered in a stylised rope-twist or hatched chasing that lends graphic precision to the otherwise smoothly model.

The silver finish is well preserved with a gentle aged patina consistent with use at table. Together the twelve pieces arranged in display make a particularly striking impression, the repeated motif of the galloping horse evoking both the animalier tradition of French decorative arts and the broader Art Deco and Modernist fascination with speed, motion, and streamlined form.

Dimensions
• Each (approximately): 3 in. long × 1 ⅝ in. wide × 1 in. high (7.6 × 4.0 × 2.5 cm)

Medium and Date
Cast zinc alloy (métal blanc) with silver plating. 20th century, likely French, mid-century.

Historical Context

The knife rest — porte-couteau in French — has its origins in the formal European dining table of the eighteenth century, where it served to prevent soiled cutlery from marking the tablecloth between courses. By the nineteenth century the form had become an established vehicle for decorative expression, and French silversmiths and silver-plate manufacturers elevated it into a minor art form. Animal subjects proved consistently popular, and the Art Deco period in particular produced a rich body of animalier knife rests in silver plate, cast in designs that balanced sculptural vitality with functional simplicity.

Equestrian knife rests in this idiom were produced by or in the manner of several distinguished French manufacturers and designers. The most celebrated were Christofle and its subsidiary Gallia, whose animal knife rests — some designed by the Swiss sculptor Édouard Marcel Sandoz — have become benchmark objects for collectors of French Art Deco silver plate.

(NY9205/IRR) See less