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Lot Essay
This elegant guéridon is part of a small, distinct group, many of which were supplied to the Russian Imperial family, attributed to the celebrated designer Andrei Voronikhin (1760-1814). With its ram’s mask monopodia and distinctive pierced gallery, the design shows the clear influence of the French à l'antique style. It is a variation of a model said to have been invented by the Parisian marchand-mercier Dominique Daguerre in association with Martin-Eloy Lignereux, both of whom were inspired by the recent archeological discoveries of Pompeii and Herculaneum.
In the late 18th and early 19th century, there was a huge demand in Russia for Parisian gilt-bronze mounted objects and furniture. However, there was a ban on their legal import which made these works both incredibly scarce and exorbitantly expensive. Not surprisingly, this led to the development of a flourishing group of local craftsmen eager to provide comparable wares. Though at first they hoped to pass off their work as expensive Parisian models, a distinctive Russian style developed and is evidenced most notably through the St. Petersburg bronziers such as Charles Dreyer, Friedrich Bergenfeldt, and Yan Aoustin, many of whom were foreign born.
A possible candidate as the maker of this guéridon is the German-born bronzier Friedrich Bergenfeldt (1768-1814). Both Voronikhin and Bergenfeldt had traveled to the workshops of Paris and were strongly influenced by Galle’s bronzes. In Russia, they had also worked very closely with the great collection of French bronzes assembled by the Emperor Paul at Mikailovsky and Pavlovsk.
Their work at Pavlovsk provides the closest link to their collaboration on this group of guéridons. Pavlovsk suffered a fire in 1803 and Voronikhin was commissioned to redesign and refurbish the interiors and it is at Pavlovsk that two of the small group of only seven guéridons currently known are located. This group, almost all with lion-masks as opposed to the ram's masks on this model, have largely remained in various Imperial palaces in St. Petersburg.
For further information on this lot, please see the Christie's online catalogue at: staging.christies.com
In the late 18th and early 19th century, there was a huge demand in Russia for Parisian gilt-bronze mounted objects and furniture. However, there was a ban on their legal import which made these works both incredibly scarce and exorbitantly expensive. Not surprisingly, this led to the development of a flourishing group of local craftsmen eager to provide comparable wares. Though at first they hoped to pass off their work as expensive Parisian models, a distinctive Russian style developed and is evidenced most notably through the St. Petersburg bronziers such as Charles Dreyer, Friedrich Bergenfeldt, and Yan Aoustin, many of whom were foreign born.
A possible candidate as the maker of this guéridon is the German-born bronzier Friedrich Bergenfeldt (1768-1814). Both Voronikhin and Bergenfeldt had traveled to the workshops of Paris and were strongly influenced by Galle’s bronzes. In Russia, they had also worked very closely with the great collection of French bronzes assembled by the Emperor Paul at Mikailovsky and Pavlovsk.
Their work at Pavlovsk provides the closest link to their collaboration on this group of guéridons. Pavlovsk suffered a fire in 1803 and Voronikhin was commissioned to redesign and refurbish the interiors and it is at Pavlovsk that two of the small group of only seven guéridons currently known are located. This group, almost all with lion-masks as opposed to the ram's masks on this model, have largely remained in various Imperial palaces in St. Petersburg.
For further information on this lot, please see the Christie's online catalogue at: staging.christies.com