Art Deco Zoomorphic Patinated Bronze Ewer with Swan Handle by Max Le Verrier, France, 1925-1935

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Signed "M. Le Verrier" in relief beneath the base, this ewer is the work of the Parisian sculptor and bronze … Read more Signed "M. Le Verrier" in relief beneath the base, this ewer is the work of the Parisian sculptor and bronze caster Max Le Verrier (1891–1973), trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and a central figure in French decorative bronze between the two World Wars. A regular exhibitor at the Salon des Artistes Français, he received several awards there in the 1920s, a period during which he established his workshop on Rue de Chabrol in Paris and developed a series of high-quality bronzes distributed through major Parisian retailers.

The piece is cast in bronze and finished with a two-tone chemical patina: amber-gold on the edges and raised areas, and verdigris in the recesses and on the inner surface of the shell—a process that enhances the sculptural clarity of the form. The nautilus-shaped body is structured by spiral ribs converging towards a central umbilicus, cast with a precision that reveals the artist's mastery of the sandblasted mold. The handle is formed from the long neck of a water bird whose plumage, rendered by a dense network of raised scales, curves into a wide handle; the head rests against the side of the body. The ring-shaped base with gadroons ensures stability.

The ornamental vocabulary draws on two distinct sources: the naturalistic repertoire of the shell and the water bird, inherited from the long tradition of animal ewers of the European Renaissance and 17th centuries; and the synthetic geometrization of the spiral characteristic of Art Deco, which replaces the faithful imitation of living creatures with a rhythmic and abstract construction of form. Among the bronze workers and sculptors with whom Le Verrier shares this style are Pierre Le Faguays, Marcel Bouraine, and Georges Leleu. This piece has an attribution mark,
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