All Objects

The body of this saltcellar depicts two scenes: Venus seated on a chariot drawn by four doves and four figures standing near a column. The first image derives from a Marcantonio Raimondi (ca. 1480–1534) engraving made after a design by Raphael that illustrates episodes from the first book of Virgil’s Aeneid. The second one may illustrate the episode in the same book in which Dido, the Queen of Carthage, receives Aeneas. On the neck is a French inscription painted in gold—1545 PRENE EN GRE (Accept this willingly)—which likely refers to a poem from the Cent Ballades (Hundred Ballads) written by Christine de Pisan (1364–ca. 1430). A male portrait in the antique style is in the receptacle.

The scenes on these plates may derive from a series of woodcuts illustrating planetary gods by Gabriele Giolito de’ Ferrara (ca. 1508–1578), published in 1534, or from The Seven Planets, a series of woodcuts by Georg Pencz (ca. 1500–1550). The first plate shows Jupiter seated on a chariot drawn by peacocks. He holds a thunderbolt and a scepter, two of his attributes. The composition is set against a dark sky highlighted with gold stars and clouds. Beneath the chariot is a coat of arms that has not been identified. The rim is decorated with heads of satyrs, grotesques, scrolls, and strapwork. The reverse has two masks with arabesques in gold and strapwork in grisaille. The second plate shows Saturn seated on a chariot drawn by two dragons. He holds a sickle in his right hand and a child’s foot in his left. The coat of arms beneath the chariot has not yet been identified. The rim has four masks, scrolls, and fruit garlands. The reverse has four masks, strapwork with laurels, and fruit garlands in grisaille and arabesque motifs. 

The scenes on these dishes are taken from engravings by René Boyvin (ca. 1525–ca. 1625) after Léonard Thiry (ca. 1500–1550). The other dish shows Jason fighting the dragon, guarding the Golden Fleece, with a sword as the Argonauts watch. At the back, the arms of the Mesmes de Ravignon family impaled with the arms of the Dolu family are flanked by allegories of Air and Earth. This dish depicts Jason confronting the Giants after sowing the teeth of Cadmus’s dragon, one of the tasks he needed to complete to obtain the Golden Fleece. The coat of arms shown on the reverse belongs to the Comte d’Avaux and the Marquis de Roissi, titles acquired later by the Mesmes family. The rim of each dish is decorated with interlinked scrolls and chariots interspersed with satyrs and putti.

The design of the composition is based on an engraving by Thielman Kerver (act. 1497–1522), published in a book of hours (Heures de la Vierge à l’usage de Rome) in 1505. Under a dark blue background filled with stars, the Virgin Mary on this plaque painted in grisaille is dressed in white, her hands joined in prayer. She is positioned within a thin gold mandorla and surrounded by the Litanies of the Blessed Virgin, prayers consisting of a series of supplications. God is blessing her from above. Numerous symbols associated with the iconography of the Virgin are represented. 

One of the most important events preceding the Crucifixion, the agony of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane is recounted in the four canonical Gospels. Only Mark (14:32–72) and Matthew (26:36–46), however, mention the location of Gethsemane. On this plaque, the apostles Peter, John, and James rest against rocks as Christ prays in the background. Prefiguring Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, an angel in the sky presents a chalice and host in his hands. In the distance, Judas arrives with soldiers. The scene is likely based on a series of fourteen engravings of the Passion of Christ by Lucas van Leyden (ca. 1494–1533), published in 1521.

These tazzas are part of a larger service with arms generally attributed to Pierre Séguier (1504–1580) or one of his relatives. The iconography derives from woodcuts by Bernard Salomon (ca. 1508 or 1510–ca. 1561) that illustrates Les Quadrins historiques de la Bible, first published in 1553. The coats of arms represented are similar to those of the Séguier family, but several elements represented here could suggest the Chabriant de Cornac family. The first tazza, inscribed with Exodus XVI, depicts the Fall of Manna. The decoration inside the lid includes acanthus leaves, arabesques inspired by Jacques Androuet du Cerceau (1510–1584), and four framed scenes drawing on mythological subjects. The interior of the cup depicts Moses and his father-in-law Jethro in a scene from Exodus. Two different scenes are illustrated on the foot: the procession of Amphitrite and Neptune after their union and an episode from Exodus in which Moses strikes a rock that miraculously begins to spout water. The second tazza is similarly decorated. In place of the first tazza’s four mythological scenes are four framed winged putti. The exterior of the lid illustrates a scene identified as II Rois XVIII (2 Samuel 18:9–14), the story of Absalom. The interior of the cup—which includes the words III Rois X (1 Kings 10)—depicts the Queen of Sheba in Jerusalem.

Cast in gold and made of six distinctive parts—body, tail, head, collar, crown, and heart—this seated lion has a pelt and a flowing mane richly mounted with cut and faceted diamonds and rubies. The head and collar are set with rubies, diamonds, and black enamel. The chasing creates the effect of fur. The lion clutches a gold heart with diamonds, which bears an Italian inscription that may be a line from a poem: Che.gire.ancor qu.i.s.oggi orna (Here the heart adorns itself today so as to keep beating). The head, which can be unscrewed, and the small holes located on the head—in the nostrils and the mouth—identify this work as a pomander, a small object meant to contain aromatic substances and protect against disease.

The body, shoulder, handle, spout, and foot of this ewer were probably made separately, then connected with wires or rivets. The handle, spout, and foot are decorated with gold enamel. The interior of the ewer is white opaque enamel, while the exterior is decorated in a dark transparent enamel. On the neck of the ewer are acanthus leaves rising toward the spout, and the shoulder has grotesques. Two chariots facing each other are driven by naked, winged figures accompanied by a peacock. The main scene, on the body of the ewer, is of several men engaged in battle. Identified by the gold letters Exodus XVII at the top of the register, the scene illustrates the struggle in the Book of Exodus between Amalek and Joshua in Rephidim.

Meant for display, this ewer may have been made by a follower of Bernard Palissy (1509–1590), who was well known for his distinctive lead-glazed earthenware. The School of Fontainebleau refers to the style of the work of an international group of artists led by Italian painters such as Rosso Fiorentino (1494–1540) and Francesco Primaticcio (ca. 1504–1570) and goldsmiths such as Benvenuto Cellini (1500–1571). Their work was an important source of inspiration for ceramists, and engravings played a key role in the transmission of motifs. The cylindrical body of this ewer is decorated with acanthus leaves and foliage. The handle has two scrolls and is decorated with foliage. The foot is set with rosettes.

This ewer, which once belonged to the Rothschild family, was confiscated by the Nazis during the regime's occupation of France before being returned to the Rothschilds after the war's conclusion.

Carved cups made from exotic materials were highly sought after during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. At the time of this cup’s making, rhinoceros and “unicorn” horns—likely narwhal tusks—were believed to be antidotes to poison. This cup depicts a procession in which the main figure holds a staff and wears a tunic, crown, and necklaces. An attendant is fanning him, and several figures are holding or playing musical instruments, while others carry a dish and a ewer for what seems to be a banquet. The bottom part of the body of the cup is decorated with garlands of fruit, and the foot of the cup depicts several men hunting an elephant and a rhinoceros.

This sculpture, which may have been part of the so-called Cabinet of Apollo made after designs by Charles Le Brun, was among the first works of art produced at the Gobelins for Louis XIV of France (r. 1661–1715). The subjects depicted were intended to celebrate the king’s glory at the close of a lengthy war against Spain. Louis XIV is shown seated on a lion’s pelt—associated with Hercules—wearing armor, and draped in a cloak. He holds a scepter and an Apollo shield, one of his emblems. The upper part of the shield has been partially erased. The lion’s pelt, porphyry rock, and scepter are later additions.

This clock is decorated with twenty-six cameos and several gemstones. The outer edge of the dial is encrusted with diamonds and rubies. The cameos depict classical female and male figures and several heads of putti. A bust placed on a gilt-brass socle serves as the finial for the giltbronze case, which is also engraved with several motifs: a putto, portrait medallions, rinceaux, acanthus leaves, and architectural elements. The ornamental details with gemstones and cameos are similar to those of the Triumphal Arch with Two Obelisks (now in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden) made by Köhler before 1705.

This object is now on view in Nicolas Party and Rosalba Carriera  (June 1, 2023–March 3, 2024).

The black cape the sitter wears and the baton he holds are typical attributes of a pilgrim. It is not known who the sitter is, but these attributes could be a reference to his surname— Pellegrini (Italian), Pilgrim (English), Pèlerin (French), Pilger (German). It is more likely, however, that these elements, together with the sitter’s casually placed tricorn hat, represent a costume for the Venetian Carnival. In 1720–21, Rosalba traveled to Paris, where she became acquainted with Antoine Watteau (1684–1721). In a number of paintings, Watteau depicts aristocrats in pilgrim attire journeying to the mythological island of love. It is possible that this portrait was commissioned by a nobleman familiar with Watteau’s art and desirous of an allusion to it.