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Lot Essay
The distinctive ornamentation and the quality of this impressive pair of candelabra recall the work of one of the greatest bronziers of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1751-1843). Their rich decorative vocabulary, harmonious form and superb quality using a combination of materials and techniques suggest they were an important commission.
THE ORNAMENTAL REPERTOIRE
The ornamental vocabulary of the present lot, intricately combining naturalistic and zoomorphic motifs with a plethora of classically- inspired elements typical of the advanced neoclassical style of the 1790s, is remarkably wide-ranging. The finely-chased gilt-bronze elements represent various mythological creatures and animals, including chimeras, winged sirens and paw feet. These motifs are harmonised by the addition of naturalistic ornamentation, such as fruit baskets, stylized palm leaves and pineapple finials, bringing compositional balance and cohesion to each piece. Understanding of the classical world, however, is maintained by recourse to the architecture of classical antiquity: their tripod form and flaming finials recall Greco-Roman athenienne; their fluted scroll supports and central pedestal suggesting pilasters and columns of ancient temples.
PIERRE-PHILIPPE THOMIRE (1751-1843)
Born into a family of ciseleurs, Thomire began working with the renowned bronzier Pierre Gouthière (1732-1813) and the ciseleur-doreur du roi Jean-Louis Prieur (d. circa 1785-1790), before opening his own workshop in 1776. Famed for his production of finely-chased gilt-bronze objéts-de-luxe, a large quantity of which were commissioned by the Royal household, Thomire frequently collaborated with marchands-merciers such as Simon-Philippe Poirier, the latter's successor, Dominique Daguerre, and regularly supplied mounts to celebrated ébénistes such as Adam Weisweiler (maître in 1778) and Guillaume Beneman (maître in 1785). On the death of Jean-Claude Duplessis – the artistic director of the Sèvres porcelain manufactory – in 1783, Thomire assumed the role of bronzier to the manufactory. Astute and lauded for the quality of his productions, Thomire was one of the few artisans to survive the Revolution. In 1804, he established a new business under the name Thomire, Duterme et Cie. and was appointed 'Ciseleur de l'Empereur' by Napoleon in 1809. In 1811 he would collaborate with the silversmith Odiot on the execution of the celebrated cradle for the King of Rome.
RELATED MODELS
A number of candelabra of this model are recorded in important public and private collections. These include:
· Two pairs in the Mobilier National, one of which was delivered by Thomire to the Garde Meuble Impérial in 1812.
· A pair in the Musée Malmaison, presently located in the ‘salle de la frise’, previously the bedroom of Mademoiselle Avrillon, in the service of Empress Joséphine. This pair originally came from the hôtel de Brienne, in rue Saint-Dominique, Paris, owned by Madame Mère, Napoleon’s mother.
· A pair in Ludwigsburg Castle, Germany, located in the Queen of Württemberg’s dining room.
· A pair at Pavlovsk Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia.
· A pair from the collection of Lord Beaumont at Carlton Towers, Yorkshire, sold Christie’s, Paris, 27 November 2018, lot 518.
· A tripod vase from the Camoin collection replicates a structure identical to the lower part of our present lot (ill. in F. Dumont "Thomire, Le Talleyrand du bronze Doré", Connaissance des Arts, April 1956, p. 78).
Thomire is known to have employed the antiquarian and idiosyncratic motif of sirens found on the present candelabra on a number of occasions. This unusual decorative device, however, was not unique to his productions. Other ornementistes are known to have utilized it from the end of the 18th century, as evident in a drawing dated 1785 for an applique by Jean-Demosthène Dugourc with figures of winged sirens (ill. H. Ottomeyer and P. Pröchel, Vergoldete Bronzen, Volume I, p. 289, fig. 4.16.6). Variants of the siren figures can also be found on various other objects and pieces of furniture, such as the famous gueridon attributed to Weisweiler and Thomire supplied in 1810 by Rocheux for the third Salon of the Princes wing at the Palace of Fontainebleau (Inv. F 1069 c) (ill. J. Samoyault, Meubles entrés sous le Premier Empire. Fontainebleau, musée national du château. Catalogue des collections du mobilier 3, Paris, 2004, p. 248, cat n°176).
Similarly, Thomire was not the only bronzier to employ chimeras as a decorative device. A number of pieces attributed to his competitor François Rémond (1747-1812), who worked in a somewhat different but equally striking style, are also adorned with similar chimerical figures as those found in the present candelabra. A suite of four candelabra attributed to Rémond likely delivered by Daguerre to the 2nd Duke of Choiseul-Praslin in 1784, allows us to admire his different interpretation of this same model (ill. S. de Ricci, Louis XVI furniture, London-New York, 1929, p. 254). A very close pair also attributed to Rémond is now housed in the Wallace Collection (Inv, F132-3, illustrated P. Hughes, the Wallace collection, catalogue of furniture, volume III, London, 1996, pp. 1236 and 1239).
THE ORNAMENTAL REPERTOIRE
The ornamental vocabulary of the present lot, intricately combining naturalistic and zoomorphic motifs with a plethora of classically- inspired elements typical of the advanced neoclassical style of the 1790s, is remarkably wide-ranging. The finely-chased gilt-bronze elements represent various mythological creatures and animals, including chimeras, winged sirens and paw feet. These motifs are harmonised by the addition of naturalistic ornamentation, such as fruit baskets, stylized palm leaves and pineapple finials, bringing compositional balance and cohesion to each piece. Understanding of the classical world, however, is maintained by recourse to the architecture of classical antiquity: their tripod form and flaming finials recall Greco-Roman athenienne; their fluted scroll supports and central pedestal suggesting pilasters and columns of ancient temples.
PIERRE-PHILIPPE THOMIRE (1751-1843)
Born into a family of ciseleurs, Thomire began working with the renowned bronzier Pierre Gouthière (1732-1813) and the ciseleur-doreur du roi Jean-Louis Prieur (d. circa 1785-1790), before opening his own workshop in 1776. Famed for his production of finely-chased gilt-bronze objéts-de-luxe, a large quantity of which were commissioned by the Royal household, Thomire frequently collaborated with marchands-merciers such as Simon-Philippe Poirier, the latter's successor, Dominique Daguerre, and regularly supplied mounts to celebrated ébénistes such as Adam Weisweiler (maître in 1778) and Guillaume Beneman (maître in 1785). On the death of Jean-Claude Duplessis – the artistic director of the Sèvres porcelain manufactory – in 1783, Thomire assumed the role of bronzier to the manufactory. Astute and lauded for the quality of his productions, Thomire was one of the few artisans to survive the Revolution. In 1804, he established a new business under the name Thomire, Duterme et Cie. and was appointed 'Ciseleur de l'Empereur' by Napoleon in 1809. In 1811 he would collaborate with the silversmith Odiot on the execution of the celebrated cradle for the King of Rome.
RELATED MODELS
A number of candelabra of this model are recorded in important public and private collections. These include:
· Two pairs in the Mobilier National, one of which was delivered by Thomire to the Garde Meuble Impérial in 1812.
· A pair in the Musée Malmaison, presently located in the ‘salle de la frise’, previously the bedroom of Mademoiselle Avrillon, in the service of Empress Joséphine. This pair originally came from the hôtel de Brienne, in rue Saint-Dominique, Paris, owned by Madame Mère, Napoleon’s mother.
· A pair in Ludwigsburg Castle, Germany, located in the Queen of Württemberg’s dining room.
· A pair at Pavlovsk Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia.
· A pair from the collection of Lord Beaumont at Carlton Towers, Yorkshire, sold Christie’s, Paris, 27 November 2018, lot 518.
· A tripod vase from the Camoin collection replicates a structure identical to the lower part of our present lot (ill. in F. Dumont "Thomire, Le Talleyrand du bronze Doré", Connaissance des Arts, April 1956, p. 78).
Thomire is known to have employed the antiquarian and idiosyncratic motif of sirens found on the present candelabra on a number of occasions. This unusual decorative device, however, was not unique to his productions. Other ornementistes are known to have utilized it from the end of the 18th century, as evident in a drawing dated 1785 for an applique by Jean-Demosthène Dugourc with figures of winged sirens (ill. H. Ottomeyer and P. Pröchel, Vergoldete Bronzen, Volume I, p. 289, fig. 4.16.6). Variants of the siren figures can also be found on various other objects and pieces of furniture, such as the famous gueridon attributed to Weisweiler and Thomire supplied in 1810 by Rocheux for the third Salon of the Princes wing at the Palace of Fontainebleau (Inv. F 1069 c) (ill. J. Samoyault, Meubles entrés sous le Premier Empire. Fontainebleau, musée national du château. Catalogue des collections du mobilier 3, Paris, 2004, p. 248, cat n°176).
Similarly, Thomire was not the only bronzier to employ chimeras as a decorative device. A number of pieces attributed to his competitor François Rémond (1747-1812), who worked in a somewhat different but equally striking style, are also adorned with similar chimerical figures as those found in the present candelabra. A suite of four candelabra attributed to Rémond likely delivered by Daguerre to the 2nd Duke of Choiseul-Praslin in 1784, allows us to admire his different interpretation of this same model (ill. S. de Ricci, Louis XVI furniture, London-New York, 1929, p. 254). A very close pair also attributed to Rémond is now housed in the Wallace Collection (Inv, F132-3, illustrated P. Hughes, the Wallace collection, catalogue of furniture, volume III, London, 1996, pp. 1236 and 1239).