A MONUMENTAL PAIR OF FRENCH ORMOLU AND CUT-GLASS EIGHTEEN-LIGHT TORCHERES

These palatial torchères perfectly encompass the lavishness and height of luxury so often associated with the Belle Epoque in France. Though the bronzier for the pair remains unknown, the undulating neo-Rococo design is reminiscent of the luxurious and sculptural furniture mountings by Léon Messagé and his contemporaries. In 1890, Messagé published his Cahier des Dessins et Croquis Style Louis XV, which inspired a flourish of objets d'art in gilt-bronze, such as clocks and chandeliers, exhibited at the Exposition universelle of 1900.
An identical pair of torchères formerly in the collection of Evalyn Walsh McLean (1886-1947), the last private owner of the Hope Diamond, were installed in the family's vast mansion on Massachusetts Avenue in Washington D.C. after the heiress's father struck gold in Colorado. The pair were subsequently sold at Sotheby's, New York, 8 October 2004, lot 169 ($265,600).