An Empire Gilt Bronze And Patinated Ewers

A pair of Empire gilt and patinated bronze ewers mounted on a red marble base, attributed to Claude Galle, circa 1805. Each with an ovoid body applied with a band of gilt bronze depicting winged figures and the mask of Mercury the top and base surmounted by a griffin-shaped handle terminating in a finial, Claude Galle (1759-1815) flourished during the Empire supplying bronzes and gilt bronze mounts for furniture, clocks and other decorative objects at Compiègne, Versailles, Saint-Cloud, the Grand Trianon and various other courts throughout Europe. These ewers are similar to Galle's 'virgin' vases and his popular series of ewers, examples of which are illustrated in H. Ottomeyer, P. Pröschel et al, Vergoldete Bronzen, Munich, 1986, vol. I, figs. 5.12.6, 5.12.8 and 5.12.9, pp. 364 - 365 and are also in Pavlovsk, illustrated in E. Ducamp ed., Pavlovsk The Collections, Paris, 1993, p. 179. The vases and ewers all have exquisitely detailed handles, most often in the form of winged virgins rather than the rarer seahorses, as on the pair of vases presented here. Measures: 21 ½ in (54.5 cm) high.