Pair of five-armed sconces after J.L. Prieur, Paris circa 1770

Rare large pair of "Greek-style" sconces in finely chased and mercury-gilded bronze.
The fluted quiver-shaped shafts adorned with asparagus are adorned with laurel garlands nailed to the front and sides.
This model features five light arms adorned with acanthus foliage, supporting the fluted cups and Medici vase-shaped bobeches.

The shafts terminate in palmette bases and are topped with draped cassolettes in the antique style from which the sacred fire escapes.

Very well preserved, with excellent carving and mercury-gilding.

Parisian work, after the designs of Jean Louis Prieur, Louis XVI period circa 1780.

Height: 50 cm; Width: 43 cm

Our opinion:

The pair of sconces we are presenting is a rare five-light variant of a model designed by Jean Louis Prieur and featured in the portrait of the Marquis de Marigny painted by Michel Van Loo in 1769 and now housed in the Louvre Museum.
This model was offered in several sizes and with a number of sconces ranging from two to five.
The pair we are presenting is the most luxurious variant, intended for an elite class of the nobility, who alone could afford such expensive ten-candle lighting.

Jean-Louis Prieur (1732-1795) Born into a family of craftsmen specializing in the decorative arts, Jean-Louis Prieur became a master sculptor at the Academy of Saint-Luc in 1765 and then a master founder "in earth and sand" in 1769. But not having the necessary equipment to cast pieces, he practiced, like many of his colleagues, the profession of "founder chaser". In the 1770s, Jean-Louis Prieur became one of the first professional draftsmen. He drew models for bronze in pen and black ink and for engraving. None of his works are signed by him. In 1778, his foundry chaser workshop went bankrupt, and he became a onemanist. Preparatory drawings very close to Jean Louis Prieur are kept at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles and published on pages 172 and 173 of Hans Ottomeyer's book "Vergoldete bronzen". Similar models: Louvre Museum Decorative Arts Museum of Lyon Württembergisches Landesmuseum in Stuttgart Royal Palace of Stockholm Similar models but with three branches: Series of four at the Petit Trianon in Versailles Drottningholm Palace (Sweden) As with all his models, Jean Louis Prieur offers many variations for this type of light arm. While the quiver-shaped shaft and the shape of the branches are always preserved, the number of lights varies from two to five, antique cassolettes can replace the fire pots and goat heads or medallions with profiles of emperors can adorn the shafts or bases. A pair of wall lights of this type can be seen in the background of the painting "The Marquis de Marigny and his wife" kept at the Louvre Museum (RF1994-17) and painted by Louis-Michel Van Loo in 1769. Brother of the Marquise de Pompadour, Abel-François Poisson de Vandières (1727-1781), Marquis de Marigny (1754) and de Menars was director and general manager of buildings, gardens, arts, academies and royal factories. A great art lover, he was very ahead of the fashion of his time. Returning from a long stay in Italy, he was one of the great architects of the return to antiquity and the new "Greek taste", with a collaboration with Pierre Garnier in particular and deliveries from 1766. It is therefore not surprising to see this model present in his interior in 1769. We can assume that this model was very fashionable between 1770 and 1775, to the point of being exported to many European countries.