Thursday 12 October 2017

Court Artefacts: Perfume Burners & Pot Pourri

With a comparatively poor sense of hygiene it is no wonder that Versailles during Louis XIV became known as "the perfumed court". However, even when hygiene became better the taste for perfume did not abate - just look at today. One way of using perfume was to burn it which would spread the pleasant aromas in the entire apartment.


Pot-pourri vase  1740  This single Chinese celadon jar was probably originally known as a ‘ginger jar’. It is decorated with deer and with pine, bamboo and prunus, the ‘three friends of winter’.   In the inventory of Madame de Pompadour’s possessions taken after her death in 1764...









Pot pourri vase from 1740 which belonged to Madame de Pompadour. The vase itself was imported from China and made from celadon. It was listed amongst the Marquise's property upon her death in 1764.



















This magnificent piece was a present for the Duke of Saxony from Marie Josèphe - his daughter. The 470 flowers are artificial but the porcelain beneath is made for storing perfume so that the flowers could "spread" a lovely scent.
The porcelain and the gilded stand were made in Vincennes.












"Queen Marie-Antoinette's" agate incense burner in the Louvre comes from her Grand Cabinet there. It is the work of the jeweler to the king Charles Ouizille (1744-1830) and the miniaturist painter Jacques-Joseph De Gault (about 1738-1812). ca. 1784








Agate incense burner which Marie Antoinette once owned. It was a part of the decoration of her Grand Cabinet. The burner was made around 1784 by the king's jeweller, Charles Ouizille, with the miniature being by Jacques-Joseph de Gault.












Perfume stand procured in 1782







This perfume burner was originally made for the Duc d'Aumont but was acquired by Marie Antoinette following his death. This one dates back to 1782 and is by Pierre Gouthière.













Billedresultat for versailles brûle-parfum











Jade perfume burner owned by the Grand Dauphin, 1684-87. The gold work is made in the French fashions of the time.
























Lacquer boxes used for incense - part of Marie Antoinette's extensive collection of Japanese objet d'arts.











Billedresultat for brûle-parfum comte d'artois










Another work by Pierre Gouthière for the Duc d'Aumont which was later bought by Louis XVI in 1782. They were recently sold by Sothesby at auction.

























Marie Antoinette's collection of Asian objet d'arts included this perfume burner. It originated in China and dates back to the Kangxi-dynasty. It entered the queen's collection in 1780.





















This crack-look vase features a small compartment for perfume and was a part of the décor of Louis XV's wardrobe. It was created in 1743

GemGem

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