Ref.13946
A pedestal table with a very rare enamel decoration from the Rubelles faience factory

Our rosewood veneered pedestal table, with a top decorated with shading enamels of a beautiful deep green, is a truly exceptional piece. Made between 1842 and 1844, this enamel decoration is the work of the artistic earthenware factory of Rubelles, near Fontainebleau. Possibly withdrawn from the Exhibition of Commerce and Industrial Products in 1844, our pedestal table is the only example known to date. At the end of the 19th century, his creations were highly prized by connoisseurs who competed for them “at a high price”. They were compared to the most beautiful English porcelain. Very rare, this decoration is made of lithophanic earthenware, a technique developed by Baron de Bourgoing in association with Alexis du Tremblay, owner of the Château de Rubelles. Directors of the Rubelles Manufacture, the two partners exploited this original process for around fifteen years. It allows you to obtain transparency effects in porcelain. The drawings are rendered in gradients, from opaque shadows to very translucent lights.

Ref.14747
Gilt bronze guéridon with painted porcelain plaque, after Adrian VAN DER WERFF, “The Dismissal of Hagar”

This circular display pedestal table in gilded bronze rests on an elaborately designed base. Large acanthus leaves rest on a tripod base and adorn a twisted fluted shaft. The top is decorated with eclectic motifs typical of the historicist style. The tabletop features a large German painted porcelain plaque based on the work of Dutch painter Adriaen van der Werff (1659–1722), The Banishment of Hagar (Genesis, 21:9), which is kept at the Dresden Museum. The image is distinguished by the delicacy of the expressions and the soft modeling of the skin tones, typical of late 19th-century German productions. On the reverse of the plaque, the inscription Verstoßung der Hagar identifies the scene, and a blue fasce coat of arms is probably linked to a private manufacturer in Dresden or Berlin, active around 1870-1900. The painted porcelain panel is set in a richly decorated frame presenting a light relief, combining finely chiseled gilded bronze and porcelain marquetry. The decorative elements include acanthus leaves, foliage, cornucopias, vases, and charming imaginary landscapes in gilded bronze within white porcelain cartouches.