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BY COMPAGNIE DES CRISTALLERIES DE BACCARAT, PARIS, CIRCA 1878 The frosted glass elephant surmounted by a draped cupola with a hinged compartment fitted with gilt-embossed glass stoppered bottles in a removable stand, the elephant in full headdress, the saddle hung with ropes and hooks holding twelve gilt-embossed glass cups, on a chamfered 'diamond' cut plinth, on a gadrooned moulded base with bracket feet and applied at the sides with Ganesh elephant mask handles, the decanters and cups modern replacements marked 'BACCARAT FRANCE', the tail replaced 25 ? in. (65 cm. high); 22 ? in. (58 cm. wide); 9 ? in. (24 cm.) deep
The model for this cave à liquor was first exhibited at the 1878 Exposition Universelle. As the only example to have been positively identified by the Baccarat Factory as period, the present lot is an exceptionally rare work by the world-renowned cristallerie firm (sold Sotheby's, London, 8 July 2015, lot 46, £485,000 inc. premium. A distinguishing feature of this nineteenth-century example is its complex construction and only one other example, commissioned slightly later circa 1920 for the for the Maharaja of Baroda in honour of the Elephant Festival in India, is similar in its technical characteristics. Between 1982 and 2004 Baccarat revived the popular model in a limited series of re-editions, and it is important to note that these examples vary significantly in structure, which is discussed in further detail below. Among these later editions is an example in the collection of the H?tel Crillon, which was once believed to be the same cave à liquor exhibited at the 1878 Exhibition. The H?tel Crillon model now having been determined to be of a later date, it is therefore possible that the present lot is in fact the original 1878 example.
BACCARAT AND THE 1878 EXPOSITION
Held only eight years following France’s devastating defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the 1878 Exposition Universelle served as a rallying moment for the recently established French Republic. As call to the nations of the world to display their cultural and mechanical achievements, the exhibition served as a platform for French artisans to showcase France's great advancements in both Industry and Art. Nowhere is this more evident than with Baccarat’s show-stopping stand.
Since its founding by royal decree of Louis XV in 1764 through to the present day, Baccarat has been a technological innovator. The company’s origins lay in a desire for France to compete with its European rivals in the delicate and complex field of crystal making. The factory was built in the Lorraine town of Baccarat whose name the firm would ultimately assume after a series of acquisitions and organizational changes in the 19th century. In 1816, Aimé-Gabriel d’Artigues acquired the manufactory at Baccarat and oversaw the operation of its first oven for the creation of crystal, a material distinguished from glass by its density, durability and its highly reflective qualities, and for which the firm would become world renowned. However, it was not until 1841 when Fran?ois-Eugène de Fontenay joined the firm that true innovation began. For it was de Fontenay who discovered that by the addition of nickel oxide in the manufacturing process, a perfectly clear product, "crystal glass", free of discolouration and imitating precious rock crystal, was produced. Shortly thereafter in 1844 the Baccarat company was awarded a Gold Medal at the French Expositions des Produits de l'Industrie.
Building on their prowess as industry leaders, Baccarat continued to innovate, developing ever more creative and technologically complex forms for their chandeliers, candelabra, and table decoration. The cristallerie’s stand at the 1878 Exposition was no exception. One visitor’s guide remarked, “The principal cristallerie man