A Pair of Bronze Vases Depicting the 'Sacrifice to Venus' cast by Barbedienne

Object Description

A Pair of Bronze Vases
Depicting the ‘Sacrifice to Venus’

Designed by Clodion
Cast by Barbedienne

Constructed from cast and hand-chased gilded bronze and supported on Griotte Rouge marble bases, the twin-handled vases in the Neoclassical taste depicting a relief of six figures performing a sacrifice to Venus, surmounted by lids with berried finials.
French, circa 1870

The vase was initially carved from marble by the famous sculptor Claude Michel, known as Clodion, in 1766, while he was working in Rome. The terracotta prototype is on view at the Detroit Institute of Arts and the finished marble was once in the famous Blumenthal collection before being acquired by the Art Institute of Chicago.

Object Literature

Barbedienne

The Barbedienne Foundry commenced in 1838 under the leadership of Ferdinand Barbedienne and Achille Collas, casting high quality models for the leading sculptors of the age, including Barye, Fremiet and Clesinger, as well as ‘mechanical reductions’ of statuary from the Classical period, and individual commissions from clock & furniture makers. The factory, situated in Rue de Lancry, Paris, employed over 300 craftsmen; in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870, the French government had the company cast cannons to serve in the defence of Paris. The company eventually closed in 1952.

Object Condition

Excellent condition

Object Details