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a bronze and glass lamp with five flowers on a stand
Premium APONEM - Hotel des Ventes CERGY-PONTOISE

Estimate €15,000 - €20,000
Sale commission
Description
TIFFANY STUDIOS ‘Pond Lily’ lamp with six arms, in bronze with a nuanced, oxidised brown-green patina. Tulip-shaped lampshade in iridescent yellow glass. Signed on the reverse of the base and numbered 385. Height: 52 cm Provenance: French private collection. Bibliography: Alastair Duncan, *Tiffany Lamps and Metalware: An illustrated reference to over 2000 models*, Woodbridge, Suffolk: Antique Collectors’ Club, 1988; the lamp is listed under no. 312, p. 80. The Tiffany Studios ‘Lily’ table lamp, often referred to in period catalogues as the ‘Pond Lily’, is one of the most iconic and commercially successful designs produced by Tiffany & Co. in the early 20th century. The first interesting feature is that it is very different from the large Tiffany lamps with leaded-glass shades. Here, the flowers consist of small individual shades made of Favrile blown glass, shaped like bells or inverted lilies, suspended from the ends of slender, arched bronze stems. The base depicts a bouquet of stems emerging from a carpet of water lily leaves. It is therefore almost more of an illuminated botanical sculpture than a traditional lamp. The design appeared at the very dawn of electric lighting at Tiffany. A ten-light version held at the Morse Museum bears the standard number 381, with lampshades known as ‘Drop Cluster Blossoms’, model number 104. The design was exhibited at the Great International Exhibition of Modern Decorative Arts in Turin in 1902, where Tiffany received the highest honours. The idea was particularly modern: since electricity required neither an oil reservoir nor ventilation for a flame, the wires could run directly through the slender bronze stems and the bulbs could be directed downwards exactly like drooping flowers. This is an important detail in the history of design: the object’s form derives directly from the new electrical technology. The wire becomes invisible within the stem, the socket becomes the calyx of the flower and the lampshade becomes the corolla. Tiffany thus transforms a technical constraint into a naturalistic motif. Favrile glass The tulips are generally made from blown Favrile glass, an iconic invention of Tiffany’s. Classic examples feature golden-yellow or amber glass, ranging from transparent to translucent, overlaid with a metallic iridescence that produces golden, pink, blue, violet or green reflections depending on the light. In fine examples, the light really gives the impression that each flower is glowing. The majority of Lily lampshades were made of transparent yellow glass with a golden iridescence, but Tiffany also produced particularly sought-after variants: green, opalescent, striated or even dichroic glass, which can change colour radically depending on whether the light is reflected or transmitted. Bronze is also an essential element. The base is usually given a brown-green or golden patina, with water lily leaves in relief at the base, followed by a cluster of long vertical stems that gradually fan out before curving downwards in arcs. Several sizes exist The design was adapted to feature varying numbers of flowers: versions with 3, 4, 7, 10, 12 and 18 lights are known, as well as floor lamps. The spectacular 18-light version is directly linked to the model on display in Turin. It proved so successful that the design continued to be marketed for many years. Today we are presenting the intermediate 7-light model. Please contact the firm for condition reports.
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About the sale Selected works from the 20th century
Auction location
Auction time 10/26/2026 at 2:00 PM
Ref. : 7656 - 47
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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