Michael Lake
Head of Department
£65,000 - £75,000
Our European Ceramics specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistHead of Department
The offered lot is a rare example of the large scale figural candelabra created in Paris at the turn of the 19th century in the 'Retour D'Egypt' style influenced by the return of the armies of Bonaparte from the Egyptian campaign.
A near identical pair of candelabra of this model differing in the treatment of the gilded elements of the bases was attributed to Pierre-Philippe Thomire when they was offered for sale at Picard, France, April 11, 1995, lot 61.
A further near identical pair of candelabra of this model with gilt and patinated bases was offered for sale Sotheby's, Paris (Collection of La Vicomtesse De Courval), March 25, 2014, lot 90.
The stylistic characteristics as well as the undoubted quality of their casting and finishing to the Egyptian figures in the current lot make them candidates for comparison to a pair of figural candelabras now in the collection of the Grand Trianon dating from circa 1800 (inv. OA 66110). These candelabra were originally acquired in 1838 under the July Monarchy to furnish the Château de Saint-Cloud but were subsequently moved to the Elysée Palace before a further later move to the Palace of Versailles in 1912 (see P. Arizzoli -Clémentel and J. P. Samoyault, Le Mobilier de Versailles, 19th century masterpiece, Dijon 2009 Number 94 pp. 266-267).