Eugène Lefebvre - Art Nouveau Sterling Silver Cup And Saucer With Holly And Mistletoe Decor

Cup and saucer in solid silver from the Art Nouveau period. The cup is potbellied, the saucer, its contours animated; the handle represents a branch with double appliques, offering on one side an ornament of mistletoe leaves and fruits, on the other, that of holly also decorated with its prickly foliage. We owe the excellence of this work to the master goldsmith Eugène Lefebvre who inscribed his hallmark in March 1896, son of a goldsmith-jeweler. François Lefebvre founded the Maison des "Lefebvre" in 1820. This family of jewelers-jewelers-goldsmiths, having as their symbol a swan pierced by an arrow, was established rue de Rivoli in Paris, offering goldsmithing of great prestige with multiple and indisputable masterpieces of quality and beauty. The son, Eugène, later settled in 1898, rue du Temple with his partner Desmarquet. The cup and saucer are both stamped with the hallmark of the goldsmith Eugène Lefebvre (EL, a swan pierced by an arrow) as well as the French guarantee hallmark Minerva 1st title (950/1000). Usual micro-scratches from use, no blows or dents, no deformation. Excellent conditions for this magnificent 1900 cup. Diameter - saucer - Diameter saucer: 14.5 cm. / 5.71 in. - Cup, edge - : 7.8 cm. / 3.07 in. Total height - total height: 5.2 cm. / 2.05 in. Sterling silver weight - sterling silver weight: 236 gr.