Solid Silver Fruit Knife, Paris 1789

Paris, 1789 – Jean-François-Marie Delaunay. Rare solid silver fruit knife, made in Paris in 1789, at the very end of the Ancien Régime. The design is of exemplary neoclassical purity: slender silver blade, silver ferrule and butt cap, deep black ebony handle, highlighted with an oval cartouche bearing the initials DM, engraved in the period. Intended for eating fruit – whose acidity damaged steel blades – these knives testify to the extreme refinement of the culinary arts on the eve of the French Revolution. Hallmarks – Paris 1789 • Maker's mark: A in a circle (1789, used until 1792) • Guild mark: crowned P, year 1789 • Discharge mark: oak leaf • Cutler's mark: ermine in a rectangle. This last mark corresponds to Jean-François-Marie Delaunay. Delaunay, a Parisian cutler whose comparable works are held at the Louvre Museum (Department of Decorative Arts), attests to the quality and institutional recognition of this production. An object at the heart of history: Precisely dated to 1789, this knife belongs to that pivotal period when the Louis XVI style reached its perfect balance: sobriety, measured proportions, and elegance without excess. The absence of a coat of arms, in favor of a simple monogram, underscores a private commission, likely from an enlightened Parisian bourgeois circle. Dimensions: Length: 20.5 cm Heritage significance: Piece strictly dated 1789; Parisian production authenticated by complete hallmarks; Cutler identified and held in national collections; Neoclassical elegance emblematic of the Louis XVI style; Rare surviving tableware in good condition