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Candelabra (one of a pair)

A work made of gilt silver and gilt bronze.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of gilt silver and gilt bronze.

Date:

c. 1794-1819

Artist:

Martin-Guillaume Biennais (French, 1764-1843)
Probably designed after Charles Percier (French, 1764-1838) and
Pierre François Léonard Fontaine (French, 1762-1853)
Paris, France

About this artwork

This object for the dining table is part of a vast service made for Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte’s sister Pauline on the occasion of her marriage to the Roman nobleman Camillo Borghese, Sixth Prince of Sulmona.

In the years after the French Revolution, architects and designers adopted the visual language of ancient Greece and Rome to express the new imperial order. Napoleon, hoping to promote Paris’s luxury trades, commissioned several silver dinner services as gifts to be sent abroad. The slender outlines and smooth surfaces of the objects in the Borghese service contrast with the rich decoration.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Applied Arts of Europe

Artist

Martin-Guillaume Biennais

Title

Candelabra (one of a pair)

Place

Paris (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1794–1819

Medium

Gilt Silver and gilt bronze

Inscriptions

MARKS: “[lozenge with seated monkey and two pellets above B, maker’s mark] / [head of Apollo in oval shield with P, unofficial Paris assay mark 1794-97],” below band of flowerheads on shaft (both marks partially defaced) and on left side of left branch; “[head of Apollo with 1 in place of P, unofficial Paris assay mark 1794-97],” below candlesocket on left side of right branch and on rear branch; “[cock with 1 in right corner in horizontal octagonal shield, Paris assay mark 1809-19] / [helmeted dexter head of Minerva in round punch, Paris excise mark 1809-19],” below bobobeches on outer surface of right candlesocket, rear candlesocket (assay mark partially defaced), and left candlesocket (both marks partially defaced) INSCRIPTIONS: “[Borghese armorials surmounted with Napoleonic Crown],” embossed on shaft

Dimensions

H.: 54.6 cm (21 1/2 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mrs. Charles V. Hickox

Reference Number

1966.98.1a-d

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https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/25100/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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