Louis Philippe French Doré Bronze and Rock Crystal Twelve-Light Chandelier

This is a petite doré bronze and delicate cut crystal six-arm with three interior lights, perfect for the dressing area or that small place that still needs a good light. Measures...

This elegant gilt bronze chandelier has wonderful cut crystal center with seven filigree detailed arms finished with fluted candle cups sitting atop floral bobéches. The crown is dra...

This elegant gilt bronze chandelier has wonderful cut crystal center with seven filigree detailed arms finished with fluted candle cups sitting atop floral bobeches. The crown is dra...

This wonderful very large 1920s gilt iron French cage chandelier has twelve lights with an assortment of flat, prism, faceted and rock crystals finished with a large beveled ball at ...

This wonderful Very Large 1920s gilt iron French cage chandelier has twelve lights with an assortment of flat, prism, faceted and rock crystals finished with a large beveled ball at ...

A Magnificent Large French Dore Bronze And Assorted Rock Crystal Louis XVI Style 9 Candelabra Light Chandelier In The Manner Of Maison Bagues.

Stunning French bronze doré framed eight-arm chandelier with hanging cut crystals, detailed with flower and star-shaped accents throughout, and crystal casings on central stem with ...

About A fine quality and elegant French ormolu and rock crystal twelve-light chandelier. Date: 19th century Origin: French Size: 45 x 28 inches.

An Important Louis XV style twelve-light rock crystal and gilt-bronze chandelier. French, circa 1850. An important Louis XV style twelve-light rock crystal and gilt-bronze chandelier, surmounted by a floral corona, issuing six scrolling branches, each terminating with three circular drip pans and nozzles, decorated all over with drops, grapes, apples and baluster shaped shades. The etymology of the word "crystal" has its origins in the Ancient Greek word for ice ‘krystallos’. Rock crystal which is always cool to the touch they considered to be ice permanently frozen by the Gods. For thousands of years Rock crystal has been prized for its beauty and remarkable ability to refract light. When cut and polished, the inherent striations and inclusions of the crystal create a refracted light richer in luminosity than that of manmade crystal or glass. These properties have made it highly desirable throughout history; its scarcity ensuring its use was limited to all but the most luxurious of decorative items. Rock crystal is in reality a natural quartz, pure monocrystals of siliceous oxide. A material of exceptional hardness with indices of light refraction close to that of a diamond, quartz has been mined and worked since antiquity. In the Middle Ages, this rare material was used almost exclusively on religious objects. A prohibitively expensive material, Cristal de roche was first mined in France in small quantities in the 17th century and its rarity forced artisans to innovate. The imitation of crystal began in Venice in the 15th century - the art of the glassmaker being to recreate the limpidity and luminosity of rock crystal. To do this, the glassmakers invented a 'crystal' made in reality of glass combined with a mixture of potassium, silicon, manganese and lead oxide heated to between 1200 and 1500 degrees. This crystal imitated rock crystal, although it displays a metallic colouring. This crystal de roche should not be confused with what is now called crystal. The latter was a development of 18th century Bohemia and, subsequently France with the Manufacture Royale de cristaux. Rock crystal first appears as small beads on candelabras and chandeliers - not yet called lustres - in the 17th century. At the beginning of the 18th century the discovery of new seams in Central Europe allowed the mining of larger blocks of crystal, which could in turn be worked into pyramids, drops and stars. The highest value was historically based, like diamonds, on two things - the weight and the clarity or limpidity of the crystal. The clearer the better, hence the phrase d'une très belle eau when referring to crystal. Perhaps the earliest recorded-reference in France is in 1697, when Louis XIV offered twelve grand 'lustres' in 'cristal de roche' to the King of Siam. Louis XV also possessed a chandelier with twelve branches in his chambre a coucher at Versailles which had been delivered by Delaroue and Slodtz. This was commented on by the duc de Luynes: 'on a mis dans la chambre du roi, un chandelier en cristal de roche d...

A Classic Louis XV style chandelier having 8 arms and 12 lamps (4 central). The gilt metal frame is heavily laden with various sized crystal plaquettes. Originally candle lit but no...

A fine French silvered bronze 12 light chandelier, This elegant chandelier is surmounted by a crown of floral rosettes and half-pear pendent drops; swags of cut drops cascade to a lo...

The metal scrolling caged frame profusely hung with clear and colored crystal beads and fruitage including lemons, pears, and apples in amethyst, amber, and ruby; issuing twelve outs...