LIVE24SEVEN // Property & Interiors
A Buyer’s Guide FRENCH PAPERWEIGHTS
Paperweights have a rich and glorious history spanning many years and countless countries, however it remains the creations of the great French glasshouses that are amongst the most treasured and desired examples in the world. Exactly why the great glasshouses of France such as Baccarat, Saint Louis and Clichy began making paperweights in the mid-1800s remains a mystery. Some believe that the perfection of the millefiori paperweight process was being developed concurrently in Venice, France and Bohemia, but it was the French who were to become world leaders in this most exquisite craft.
By 1845 France was the undeniable paperweight centre of the world, however, in a remarkably short period of time and just as mysterious as their initial appearance and fantastic popularity was their sudden and inexplicable decline. After about 1860 the art of paperweight making all but disappeared for some 80 years. The paperweights made in France during the classic period of 1845 to 1860 remain amongst some of the most desired examples for collectors from around the world.
❝ / 26
Of all the French makers, Baccarat is unquestionably the most famous and renowned producer. Like all of the French glasshouses, they used two principle types of decorative techniques in the creation of their weights, the first being millefiori canes whose cross-sections revealed stars, spirals and shamrocks or alternatively wonderful, almost comic silhouettes which ranged from dogs to devils.
Exactly why the great glasshouses of France
such as Baccarat, Saint Louis and Clichy began making paperweights in the mid-1800s remains a mystery.
Paperweight collecting often begins with a fascination for these unusual, gem-like creations and then comes the desire to know more about them! Who made them? How are they made? Where did they come from? What is their inherent value?
BG
Secondly was the development of three-dimensional lamp-worked flowers encased within the glass. This process became both highly perfect and increasingly popular with the French makers. At Baccarat, flower choices included pansies, primroses, wheat flowers, clematis, buttercups and of course, roses. Fruits such as strawberries and pears were also frozen in glass, as were lizards, snakes and other reptiles.
One of Baccarat’s toughest competitors was the firm of St. Louis whose artisans could do pretty much everything Baccarat’s could. In addition they had a Venetian-inspired innovation of their own, being the crown. These hollow, somewhat flat balls had sides made of alternating designs of lattachino, which met at the apex of the weight at a single piece of cane. Like Baccarat’s, some of St. Louis’ paperweights were faceted to give the viewer small windows to reveal the beauty and complexity of the design within.
❞
There were numerous other paperweight makers in 19th century France, including the highly regarded Clichy, whose trademark cane rose appears in some 30 percent of all the paperweights produced by the company. Like its French counterparts, Clichy often inserted a cane into its paperweights whose cross section was the first letter of its name, helpful when attempting to identify who the original creator of a weight was.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156