Inkwell

Both functional and highly decorative, bronzes d’ameublement such as wall-lights, firedogs, clocks and desk accessories played an important role in the luxurious French interior from the late seventeenth till the early nineteenth century. These objects followed the latest stylistic changes and well-known artists and sculptors were sometimes involved in their design.

Indispensable for letter writers, a gilt-bronze inkstand would not only complement the mounts of the writing table on which it was placed but could be a piece of sculpture in its own right. Here, a male nude reclines on the scrolling base and leans against a lidded vase which forms the inkwell. With his left arm, he supports a large shell which rests on his shoulder. The figure’s twisting form and the curves of the base suggest a date of manufacture in the 1760’s.