PAIR OF VASES

Between 1877 and 1884

Blown and hot-worked glass, polychrome enamel decoration, heightened with gilding

H. 50.1 cm

Private collection

© James D. Julia Auctioneers

_

James D. Julia Auctioneers (via Invaluable.com), Extraordinary Rare Lamps, Glass & Fine Jewelry Auction (ref: 52652-1), Lot 1217, Fairfield, December 1, 2017.

_

Pair of large, tripod, pear-shaped vases, in dark amber blown glass for the body, enhanced with blue glass elements worked and hot-applied: the base, the undulating "ribs" extending over the body, the neck stretched with pincers, and the "tears" of glass that seem to flow from it.

The vases feature a rich polychrome enamel decoration of Far Eastern inspiration, composed of leafy and flowering branches, flowers, and butterflies. Cartouches evoking unrolled painted scrolls or sheets, treated on alternately gilded or opaque silver-white backgrounds, display representations of birds perched on branches or in flight, as well as maritime landscapes inspired by Japanese prints.

Numerous gilded highlights and metallic effects enrich the decoration and accentuate its precious character. The quality of execution and the delicacy of the motifs, combined with the richness of the palette and the diversity of decorative registers, bear witness to particularly refined craftsmanship.

Several vases of comparable form are known today, in various sizes. While the general structure is found from one example to another, each is distinguished by the color of the glass and the composition of its enameled decoration.