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Solid silver (~958/1000)
Goldsmith Eloi Guérin (born around 1704, received master in 1727, died around 1765) [Nocq II, p.288-289]
Paris, 1755-1756
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47 x 32 cm
Weight: 1,657 g
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Good general condition.
Numerous scratches on the basin.
Not repolished.
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Hallmarks
Hallmark of the master goldsmith:
- Hallmark of Eloi Guérin (crowned fleur-de-lys, two grains, EG, a sun) [Louvre 2022, n°313 p.102]. According to our initial research, this hallmark, which is mainly found on pieces dated between 1754 and 1759, is probably Guérin's third hallmark. It is in all respects consistent with that inscribed on silver-gilt cutlery preserved in the Louvre [OA12316, ibid.]
Regulatory hallmarks in use in Paris from October 1, 1750 to October 1, 1756:
- Trace of the charge hallmark for large silver works [BP n°410], crossed out
- Charge for gold works and small silver works (A bull's head) [BP n°411]
- Hallmark of the common house in use from July 12, 1755 to July 30, 1756 (Crowned letter P) [BP n°425]
Regulatory hallmark in use from May 1765 to November 1774 (perhaps as early as 1733, see Dennis II, n°4.5 p.28)
- Discharge for gold works and small silver works going abroad (A small cow) [BP [n°454]
Was the striking out of the charge mark of large works in favor of that of small works (while it is a very large dish) due to a small tax arrangement between the goldsmith and the taxator?
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Coat of arms
von Brackel family, from the Duchy of Courland (our thanks to Bastien Lancelot for this identification).
This coat of arms is consistent with the discharge mark of works going abroad.
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References
BP: Michèle Bimbenet-Privat et Gabriel de Fontaines, La datation de l'orfèvrerie parisienne sous l'Ancien Régime, Paris-Musées 1995
Dennis II: Faith Dennis, Three Centuries of French Domestic Silver, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 1960, vol. II
Louvre 2022: Michèle Bimbenet-Privat, Florian Doux et Catherine Gougeon, Orfèvrerie de la Renaissance et des Temps Modernes, XVIe, XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles, La collection du Musée du Louvre, vol. 3, éditions Faton, Paris 2022
Nocq II: Henry Nocq, Le poinçon de Paris, Léonce Laget, Paris 1968, tome II