{"id":4462294138970,"title":"Antique French Silver Gilt Goblet, Tallois \u0026 Mayence, Paris c.1880","handle":"antique-french-silver-gilt-goblet-tallois-mayence-paris-c-1880","description":"This utterly superb and extremely eye-catching French silver parcel gilt goblet is of the highest possible quality and was perhaps destined to be exhibited at one of the great International Exhibitions of the nineteenth century, most likely one of the two Parisian Expositions Universelle which took place in the years 1878 and 1889 and might be worthy of further research. The goblet is in impeccable original condition with no signs of wear or use.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe goblet has deep and lustrous gilding to the interior and has been beautifully ornamented with great artistry in a ‘flight of exotic fantasy’ with all aspects of the execution showing great finesse and technical mastery. The aesthetic style ornament shows the naturalistic influence of Japan in the late nineteenth century and also pays homage to Japanese mixed metal techniques. Unusually, the Japanese naturalism has been combined with friezes of rigid architectural elements, niches with vases of flowering plants and an acanthus leaf border around the base of the bowl of the goblet, styles influenced by Indian Mughal and Moorish art and architecture. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe craftsmanship is flawless, crisp and sharp, with all the elements executed with absolute precision. The flowers, foliage, butterfly and bird which ornament the body of the goblet stand proud of the matte silver background which has been removed in areas mechanically or possibly using acid, to leave bas relief cameo style images. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere is subtle shading to the petals on some of the flowers; some have a blush or salmon pink colouration fading softly to silver towards the centre of the flower, with gold at the centre. There is a green tone to some of the leaves with deep golden yellow or rose gold tones to others which provides a superb contrast to the finely engraved matte greyed silver background and the deep rich golden shine of the gilding. The floral, foliate and insect border to the foot is in a similar style but this time the background silver has a more lustrous and finely hammered surface. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe detail is truly remarkable; the bramble stem, for example, has every tiny thorn in place. The bird is beautifully rendered with realistic fluffy feathers and the butterfly it chases is of two colours. The eyes, beak and feet of the bird have been highlighted with gilding, simulating Japanese mixed metal techniques. The chasing is exceptional throughout; each stroke has been executed with great precision and a lightness of touch.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe goblet has been fully marked to the centre of the underside of the foot with a French silver fineness stamp (introduced in 1819) for 950\/1000 silver and this mark is repeated near the rim. The maker’s mark is that of the highly regarded silversmiths, A. M. Tallois and Mayence of 19 Boulevard de Strasburg Paris. Tallois and Mayence was a partnership between Paul Tallois and Louis Mayence and they are believed to have traded from this address from around 1880, possibly a few years earlier. Prior to this, the same premises were occupied by Maison Lavalee, followed by Francois Nicoud, both of these firms were also highly regarded jewellers and silversmiths, trading to the top end of the market. To the outer part of the underside of the base there are more marks, on three lines:- FAT, UFS and LN. Similar marks occur on other items made by this firm and are likely to be tally marks or journeyman’s marks, recording the initials of the individual craftsmen who worked on this goblet. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJourneymen were qualified craftsman who worked for a master silversmith and it is thought that these identification marks may have been used to count how many pieces each individual had produced or to help with quality control monitoring. Alternatively, the marks could relate to the firm’s internal record keeping or pattern design identification.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProvenance:-\u003c\/strong\u003e European Art Market\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:-\u003c\/strong\u003e Height 14.5 cms; Width 7 cms\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWeight:-\u003c\/strong\u003e 214 Grammes","published_at":"2019-12-13T00:46:20+00:00","created_at":"2019-12-13T01:06:01+00:00","vendor":"Joseph Cohen Antiques","type":"French Silver Gilt Goblet","tags":["European Silver","Sold Archive"],"price":0,"price_min":0,"price_max":0,"available":false,"price_varies":false,"compare_at_price":null,"compare_at_price_min":0,"compare_at_price_max":0,"compare_at_price_varies":false,"variants":[{"id":31593135931482,"title":"Default Title","option1":"Default 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The goblet is in impeccable original condition with no signs of wear or use.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe goblet has deep and lustrous gilding to the interior and has been beautifully ornamented with great artistry in a ‘flight of exotic fantasy’ with all aspects of the execution showing great finesse and technical mastery. The aesthetic style ornament shows the naturalistic influence of Japan in the late nineteenth century and also pays homage to Japanese mixed metal techniques. Unusually, the Japanese naturalism has been combined with friezes of rigid architectural elements, niches with vases of flowering plants and an acanthus leaf border around the base of the bowl of the goblet, styles influenced by Indian Mughal and Moorish art and architecture. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe craftsmanship is flawless, crisp and sharp, with all the elements executed with absolute precision. The flowers, foliage, butterfly and bird which ornament the body of the goblet stand proud of the matte silver background which has been removed in areas mechanically or possibly using acid, to leave bas relief cameo style images. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere is subtle shading to the petals on some of the flowers; some have a blush or salmon pink colouration fading softly to silver towards the centre of the flower, with gold at the centre. There is a green tone to some of the leaves with deep golden yellow or rose gold tones to others which provides a superb contrast to the finely engraved matte greyed silver background and the deep rich golden shine of the gilding. The floral, foliate and insect border to the foot is in a similar style but this time the background silver has a more lustrous and finely hammered surface. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe detail is truly remarkable; the bramble stem, for example, has every tiny thorn in place. The bird is beautifully rendered with realistic fluffy feathers and the butterfly it chases is of two colours. The eyes, beak and feet of the bird have been highlighted with gilding, simulating Japanese mixed metal techniques. The chasing is exceptional throughout; each stroke has been executed with great precision and a lightness of touch.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe goblet has been fully marked to the centre of the underside of the foot with a French silver fineness stamp (introduced in 1819) for 950\/1000 silver and this mark is repeated near the rim. The maker’s mark is that of the highly regarded silversmiths, A. M. Tallois and Mayence of 19 Boulevard de Strasburg Paris. Tallois and Mayence was a partnership between Paul Tallois and Louis Mayence and they are believed to have traded from this address from around 1880, possibly a few years earlier. Prior to this, the same premises were occupied by Maison Lavalee, followed by Francois Nicoud, both of these firms were also highly regarded jewellers and silversmiths, trading to the top end of the market. To the outer part of the underside of the base there are more marks, on three lines:- FAT, UFS and LN. Similar marks occur on other items made by this firm and are likely to be tally marks or journeyman’s marks, recording the initials of the individual craftsmen who worked on this goblet. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJourneymen were qualified craftsman who worked for a master silversmith and it is thought that these identification marks may have been used to count how many pieces each individual had produced or to help with quality control monitoring. Alternatively, the marks could relate to the firm’s internal record keeping or pattern design identification.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProvenance:-\u003c\/strong\u003e European Art Market\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:-\u003c\/strong\u003e Height 14.5 cms; Width 7 cms\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWeight:-\u003c\/strong\u003e 214 Grammes"}