Pair Of Candlesticks In Gilt Bronze Ferdinand Barbedienne 19th Century

A nice pair of candlesticks from the 19th century. French, gilt bronze. The top of the candlesticks is decorated with bunches of grapes and grape leaves. Below is a head of a man and a woman with a shell motif underneath. The slender center section has fluted rings adorned with a pearl necklace. The base is decorated with a similar motif. Signed on the base by the famous bronze caster: Ferdinand Barbedienne

Born in 1810, Ferdinand Barbedienne started at 30 Boulevard Poissonnière in Paris, one of the most famous 19th century artistic bronze casting companies. In addition to his production, he worked for well-known artists such as Auguste Clésinger, Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse and Louis Barrias. At the 1851 World's Fair in London, Barbedienne's firm won two Council medals. At the 1855 World's Fair, he won a medal of honor and eleven employee medals for the work of his collaborators, such as his model designer Louis-Constant Sévin (1821-1888) and his hunter Désiré Attarge (1820-1878). Attarge won the Crozatier Prize in 1862 and 1864, which was awarded the best fighter in France, and was again awarded a silver medal at the 1867 World's Fair. In 1860, Barbedienne supplied bronze ornaments for the furniture of Prince Napoleon's Pompeian Villa, located Avenue Montaigne in Paris. Barbedienne's production has always been highly regarded, and he himself was admired by contemporary art critics who, at the 1878 World's Fair, compared him to a prince of industry and the king of bronze casting.