Big Antique Cup In Onyx Gilt And Silver Bronzes Att.eugéne Cornu Nineteenth

Spectacular and important Antique Cup in Onyx from Algeria XIXth circa 1870/80, Mount of chiseled and gilded and silvered bronzes, attribution to Eugéne Cornu. Object of great decoration, versatility of locations, extraordinary veining. Superb Dimensions: Height: 32 cm Base 24cmx24cm Weight: 13kg See with a meter the proportions; Superb condition, no gaps or accidents, tiny traces of seniority and use and very few égrenures (Old object). Everything is original. Beautiful original gilding and silvering, The whole has been dismantled, cleaned and reassembled. Beautiful shine on the Onyx. Origin: France, castle in the South West. This cup is richly molded and very decorative, Beautiful body based on an ovoid shape with a wide, very flared neck with a flat headband in relief in the upper part, and on a pretty shower stand in the lower part, with side handles with muzzle heads of roaring lions and with rich decorated drooping rings, and beautiful strapping of gilded and silvered bronzes decorated with friezes of flat gadroons and pearls in the Antique style, in the upper part and on the foot of the Cup. All the bronzes are contrasting gilded and silvered bronzes, the most beautiful effect. This cup rests on a magnificent square-shaped base with various and numerous evolutionary moldings including a reversed cavetto in the central part, and ends with four pretty projecting claw feet in spandrels decorated with scrolls and leaves. Biblio: After analysis of the whole, of the materials, of the assembly, of the decorations, and of its composition, and of the time. Model reference see link at the end of the description, Label missing. This cup is ATTRIBUTED TO LOUIS FRANÇOIS EUGÈNE CORNU (1827-1899) for the COMPAGNIE DES MARBRES ONYX d'ALGÉRIE (1858-1886). Eugène Cornu is a French sculptor and bronzier, whose date of birth is unknown, died in 1875. He first worked as a draftsman then took over the management of the works of the Maison Tahan. In 1858, he became the creator and director of the Compagnie des Marbres et Onyx d'Algérie de A.Pallu & Co. Then Gustave Viot became the owner of these mines and Eugène Cornu continued to collaborate within the Company. They will develop luxurious articles mixing onyx, bronze and champlevé enamels, until it bears his name: "Société des Onyx d'Algérie E. Cornu et Cie". The company will also produce works of after the models of Albert Carrier-Belleuse, Charles Cordier and Louis-Alfred Barrias. After his death in 1875, the company will be taken over by H. Journet, and the onyx mines in the Oran region will continue to be exploited until the beginning of the 20th century. With Ferdinand Barbedienne or Bernard-Alfred Meyer was considered one of the best manufacturers of Parisian luxury items under the Second Empire. Eugène Cornu will participate in many Universal Exhibitions, those of 1862, 1871, 1872 in London and that of 1867 in Paris. During the latter, he will be honored with a gold medal for an impressive pair of onyx, bronze and enamel vases (signed G. Viot et Cie, 1867 Exhibition, Eugène Cornu Inventor). This piece is emblematic of the antiquing current specific to the 19th century and in particular to the Second Empire. Napoleon's Egyptian campaign in 1798 started the fashion for Egyptomania. Shapes, colors, patterns, and iconography from ancient Greek and Egyptian times are becoming very popular in the West. In addition, onyx is a stone that was widely used in antiquity for cameos and as an ornament for decorative objects. Directed by Gustave Viot from Touraine from 1858, the Company of Marbles and Onyx of Algeria opened ten years later, at 24 boulevard des Italiens in Paris, a store offering furniture combining onyx with gilded bronze and also with enamel. The designer François-Eugène Cornu is in charge of the artistic direction. The rewards follow one another on the occasion of the Universal Exhibitions, such as the gold medal at that of 1867. This new material becomes the symbol of luxury and exuberance under the Second Empire. Paris' most famous courtesan, Blanche de Pavïa, commissioned a monumental staircase entirely covered in onyx for her private mansion on the Champs-Élysées, where she was depicted naked, covered in jewellery. Just as the basin in Salammbô's apartment is covered with onyx marble, his bathroom and his legendary bathtub are all encrusted with it. Reference for sale of a cut model similar to the proposed model: See: https://www.rouillac.com/fr/lot-552-137147-attribute_louis_francois_eugene_cornu