Saint-Clément Emile Gallé earthenware inkwell heraldic lion coat of arms Nancy 19th century
Articles
Earthenware inkwell from the Saint-Clément Manufactory, by Emille Gallé*, heraldic lion model, decorated with a lion overlooking a shield with the arms of the city of Nancy (motto of the city "Non inultus premor") and a knight's helmet forming an inkwell; on the other side a crenellated tower, label Perrier Rue du Bac, Art Nouveau period, late 19th century.
This inkwell is in good condition, superb quality. It is very decorative. Signed St Clément on the side. Perrier label on the bottom: CLAIN & PERRIER (1879-1914)
Two Parisian partners who owned a workshop store at 238 boulevard St Germain and rue du Bac.
Please note: the feather forming a grip at the top of the helmet is missing, small enamel chip on the lion's mane, some wear and scratches from time, see photos.
is a famous French glassmaker, ceramist and cabinetmaker. Emile Gallé was born in 1846 in Nancy, where he spent his childhood. He studied from 1858 to 1864 at the Imperial High School in Nancy, then from 1865 to 1867 in Weimar. After his studies, he worked in the ceramic and crystal business of his father, Charles Gallé (1818-1902). A trained porcelain painter, he was a porcelain and crystal merchant, supplier to His Majesty Emperor Napoleon III. He inherited his mother-in-law's store, where he sold
ceramics manufactured as a subcontractor by the Saint-Clément factory until 1876.
In 1873, the Gallé family settled on Avenue de la Garenne in Nancy. Emile Gallé then benefited from a ceramic decoration workshop and undertook research into glass. Emile Gallé took over his father's business in 1877, and gradually moved away from the classical style of his father's ceramics. The artist was also passionate about botany and drew strong inspiration from nature from 1885. Following the success of his glassworks, Emile Gallé decided to open a cabinetmaking workshop in Nancy in 1885. His first works were visible at the Universal Exhibition of 1889 and the workshop expanded considerably. He founded the Ecole de Nancy, a provincial alliance of art industries, in 1901: these were artists and industrialists from Lorraine grouped together to work together and defend their interests against competition. He thus became the main driving force behind the Art Nouveau style, which is characterized by the use of sinuous lines, curves and organic forms in architecture and decorative arts. (See Musée Gallé website).