Description: Master fondeur-ciseleur 1772

Brass, partially silver-plated, three lead crystal bowls
one restored

The molded ring-shaped frame rests on acanthus leaves terminating in a spiral. The baluster is decorated with rings, grooves, and water-leaf motifs. The tripod base is adorned with three arabesque brackets decorated with acanthus leaves, each connected by a garland of laurel leaves. The crystal bowls are engraved with diamond patterns.

Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1751-1843), along with Gouthière, was considered the most famous fondeur-ciseleur of the Louis XVI era. He was the son of the chaser Luc-Philippe Thomire, from whom he received the title of "Master fondeur-ciseleur." Thomire trained under the sculptors A. Pajout and J.A. Houdon, for whom he made bronze portrait busts; he was also a student at the Academy of St. Luc. As early as 1775, Thomire was working for the Crown, collaborating with J.L. Prieur on the bronze fittings for Louis XVI's coronation carriage. In 1783, Thomire succeeded D. Cuplessis as "Ciseleur et doreur" at the Sèvres Manufactory, where he specialized in the production of clock cases and vessels made of bronze and porcelain. From 1784 onwards, his name appears in the invoices of the Garde-Meuble de la couronne as a maker of bronze applications for furniture. He worked with Beneman on the production of furniture for the Crown. In 1786, Thomire also supplied two sets of andirons for Marie Antoinette's apartments at Versailles. These successes were increased so significantly in the last years of the 18th century through commissions abroad, including for the royal and aristocratic houses in Spain and Portugal, that Thomire sought to satisfy the great demand for luxurious objects with an expanded workshop.