1 / 3
Description
SÈVRES
A pair of spindle-shaped vases, 3rd size, in hard-paste porcelain with a beautiful blue ground and a decoration in gold and platinum comprising friezes of stylised laurel leaves, palmettes and pineapple motifs, the bodies centred with a polychrome decoration painted in the style of a cameo depicting the left and right profiles of the Belvedere Apollo and the Versailles Diana,
mounted in gilded bronze with dolphin-shaped handles and a square base. Restorations (condition report available on request).
Royal Sèvres Porcelain Manufactory, 1822.
Marked with the cipher of Louis XVIII and the date (18)22 in blue on the interior of the necks.
H. 39 cm.
Provenance
Probably the pair delivered on the orders of the Viscount de La Rochefoucauld (Director-General of Fine Arts) to Mr Rossini, Director of the Royal Italian Theatre, on 14 June 1825.
History
Gioacchino Rossini (1792–1868) was an Italian composer, regarded as one of the masters of nineteenth-century opera. A child prodigy trained in Bologna, he quickly achieved success with *Tancredi* (1813) and *The Barber of Seville* (1816). The composer of nearly 40 operas, he moved to Paris in 1823, where he became director of the Théâtre Royal Italien, Intendant of Royal Music and Inspector-General of Singing. In 1829, following his final opera, *William Tell*, he mysteriously withdrew from the operatic stage at the age of just 37. He subsequently devoted himself to sacred and chamber music, before dying in Paris in 1868, leaving behind a major body of work within the operatic repertoire.
Our pair appears to be the one listed in the Sèvres porcelain factory’s register of Gifts and Credit Sales dated 14 June 1825. (Sèvres Archives, Vbb 7, 4 v°) described as follows: ‘2 spindle-shaped vases with a beautiful blue base, heads and ornaments in gold – 400 f.’.
Related works
- A pair of richly decorated vases, featuring this cameo-style painted decoration by Antoine Béranger depicting the gods Apollo and Diana, presented by King Louis XVIII to his niece, the Duchess of Berry, Royal Sèvres Porcelain Manufactory, 1814, now in the collections of the Louvre Museum (inv. OA 11089 &
11090).
- A pair of vases with a pale blue background, decorated with classical profiles painted in the cameo style, signed Huard, with dolphin-shaped handles, Royal Sèvres Porcelain Manufactory, circa 1820, Vandermeersch collection.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
About the sale
CLASSICAL ART, Asian collection, antique paintings & works of art
Auction location
Auction time
11/04/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
You may also like