Description
BUY WITH CONFIDENCE. GUARANTEED AUTHENTIC AND AS DESCRIBED OR YOUR MONEY BACK! Today we are happy to offer for sale a rare and beautiful antique Louis-Ernest Barrias & Ferdinand Barbedienne putto bronze figural vase! Louis-Ernest Barrias was a renowned French sculptor and artist working in Paris in the mid to late 19th century. He worked mainly in marble and his work was translated to other mediums such as this bronze. This superb casting was done by Ferdinand Barbedienne, the renowned and esteemed French metalworker and manufacturer, who was well known as a bronze founder working during the same period. This lovely piece is exceptionally finely crafted and detailed. It is clearly NOT a later re-cast. The diminutive objet d’art might be used as a bud vase, toothpick or match holder, and even used to store a fine writing pen. The bronze depicts a chubby putto child figure bending down and struggling to lift a large Chinese Ming cloisonne-style vase decorated with beaded border neck and base and etched center band. A delicate bonsai tree grows out of the ground neat the base of the piece. The work is strongly influenced by the Victorian (aesthetic/Orientalist) interest in the Fast East and obsession with nature, with hints of the Art Nouveau style which was just taking hold at this time. The piece is signed on the vase “E Barrias” and also on the back of the base “F. BARBEDIENNE,” and in ink on the bottom ” 21557 Seri (indecipherable).” Bronze presents beautifully and is in excellent antique condition, with very minor display wear and patina commensurate with age. Add elegant French Victorian style and elegance to any fine antique bronze collection with this precious piece…Fresh to the market from an old Rhode Island estate! Dimensions: 4-1/2″ in height, 3-1/4″ in width (at the widest point), 2-1/4″ in depth NOTE: Shipping cost includes full insurance. We do not mark up shipping. 20GW/423/N/F