Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 21

Art Deco Italian Crystal Table Centerpiece Completely Smooth

About the Item

Before describing the object under consideration we must make an important clarification, the artifact, one of many that we will publish over time, is part of the collection museum of a historic Florentine mill that unfortunately closed recently. It is the Marcello Galgani & Son company, whose completely manual and artisanal work has not withstood the disproportionate advance of mass-produced mechanical processes! Marcello Galgani began his craft as a grinder and restorer in 1960; as the years went by, Marcello mastered and became familiar with particular techniques and shapes, resulting in the production of objects that manage to retain the freshness of grinding and engraving, the warmth and softness of light, and the inimitable flavor of unique artifacts. After several years, his son Lorenzo, who grew up among crystals, also entered the business and immediately became passionate about this ancient craft with skill and ability. Stimulated by the aesthetic sense of the past, father and son, set up a workshop in which the shapes they researched and created themselves are mouth-blown by traditional Tuscan glassmakers in Empoli, then ground and engraved using ancient sixteenth-century techniques, with motifs born of the Galgani's inexhaustible imagination or culturally inspired by designs of objects seen and studied in Florentine museums (Uffizi, Galleria Palatina, Museo degli Argenti, etc.). Marcello and Lorenzo Galgani were also Masters in the difficult art of restoration, bringing rare and precious objects back to life. As mentioned the company recently closed and disposed of all its last production, only Marcello's old private museum collection remained, which includes unique and special objects created over time, a collection that the craftsman made available to us for a planned sale. All of the objects were made entirely by hand with old grinding wheels, but there were mainly two tools that allowed the creation of masterpieces: the right hand and the left hand of the master craftsman. Ancient glassmaking techniques were used for all the ground and engraved products: first the object was ground with an emery wheel fed continuously by a jet of abrasive sand and water, then re-polished with a very fine-grained sandstone wheel also fed with water; the engravings were done freehand using as many as 10-15 small stone wheels for each design (flowers, branches, animals, etc. ); then the object was polished and shined; we must make, at this point, an important clarification on these last two operations: towards the end of the 1960s acid crystal polishing was devised, the object was immersed and rotated in a solution of sulfuric acid, fluoridic acid and water and in a short time all the defects left by the previous processes were eliminated, it was a fast, industrial operation that allowed to lower costs considerably, with discrete but not excellent results. But for Galgani's products polishing is done with a cork bark wheel wet with water and pumice to make the surfaces more transparent, and finally, polishing was achieved with a felt wheel wet with a paste of water, iron oxide, and cerium oxide. This series of processes takes an average of two days of work( sometimes much longer) for each object, each engraving or grinding is the result of the creative inventiveness of the two craftsmen, inventiveness that transforms crystal into a material reality of the highest aesthetic value and inestimable value. All objects in the collection have never been used; they were part of the exhibition. Original crystal table centerpiece; the simple smooth shape of the plate and the base that supports it has a unique elegance and refinement; it can be used as a sophisticated fruit bowl or as an elegant table centerpiece; the object was made and signed by the Master was created in Marcello Galgani's workshop in 1984, and made with the techniques we have explained in the description, with particular accuracy and expertise the perfect polishing was done. The Master was inspired by the cup that Bacchus holds in the Caravaggio painting(see photo). The object is in excellent condition. There are 6 examples of this piece. Measures diameter cm.34, height cm.23. We use special packaging materials (wooden crates, styrofoam, etc.) for maximum protection and safety of the objects.
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 9.06 in (23 cm)Diameter: 13.39 in (34 cm)
  • Style:
    Art Deco (In the Style Of)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    1984
  • Condition:
    The item is in excellent condition. All items in the entire collection have never been used; it was part of the exhibition.
  • Seller Location:
    Prato, IT
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: MG-2261stDibs: LU4632238426652
More From This SellerView All
  • Art Deco Italian Crystal Table Centerpiece Completely Smooth
    Located in Prato, Tuscany
    Before describing the object under consideration, we must make an important clarification; the artifact, one of many that we will publish over time, is part of the museum collection ...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Italian Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Baccarat Art Deco French Crystal Table Centerpiece.
    By Baccarat
    Located in Prato, Tuscany
    We kindly suggest that you read the entire description, as we try to give you detailed technical and historical information to guarantee the authenticity of our objects. Rare and exceptional French crystal centerpiece...
    Category

    Early 20th Century French Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Italian Cut And Ground Crystal Table Centerpiece With Lid
    Located in Prato, Tuscany
    Before describing the object under consideration we must make an important clarification; the artifact, one of many that we will publish over time, is part of the museum collection o...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Italian Rococo Revival Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Daum Round French Crystal Table Centerpiece
    By Daum
    Located in Prato, Tuscany
    We kindly suggest that you read the entire description, as with it we try to give you detailed technical and historical information to guarantee the authenticity of our objects. Ele...
    Category

    Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Art Noveau Style Huge Crystal Fruit Bowl and Planter Table Centerpiece
    Located in Prato, Tuscany
    Before describing the object under consideration, we must make an important clarification; the artifact, one of many that we will publish over time, is part of the museum collection ...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Italian Art Nouveau Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Vannes-le-chatel Cristalleries Style French Lead Crystal Centerpiece
    By Art Vannes
    Located in Prato, Tuscany
    We kindly suggest that you read the entire description, as with it we try to give you detailed technical and historical information to guarantee the authenticity of our objects. Exc...
    Category

    Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

You May Also Like
  • Art Deco Crystal Centerpiece by Crystal F . B
    Located in Lisbon, PT
    A french Art Deco elegant crystal center table with “ Cristal F . B “ mark on the base. A great exemplar of glasswork in the abstract forms of the past Era.
    Category

    20th Century French Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Large Art Deco Style Rock Crystal Centerpiece
    Located in New York, NY
    A Large and unusual Art Deco style rectangular form cut rock crystal centerpiece.
    Category

    2010s Unknown Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Rock Crystal

  • Art Deco Crystal Centerpiece, 20th Century
    Located in Lisbon, PT
    A french Art Deco crystal centerpiece from the mid 20th century. Width 19,68 in (50 cm) Depth 9,44 in (24 cm) Height 5,11 in (13 cm)
    Category

    20th Century French Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Art Deco Crystal Centerpiece by Daum, 20h Century
    By Daum
    Located in Lisbon, PT
    A large Art Deco French 'Daum' molded crystal glass dish, circa 1950s, in clear glass with thick molten graduated layers with Daum mark sideways.
    Category

    20th Century French Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Signed 3-Piece Lalique Art Deco Crystal Console Centerpiece, Set
    By Lalique
    Located in Great Barrington, MA
    Glamorous signed "crystal Lalique" 3-piece Art Deco crystal centerpiece/console set featuring a pair of two-light candlesticks with a frosted feathered pattern on arching scrolls wit...
    Category

    Vintage 1930s French Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

  • Art Deco Etched Crystal Centerpiece Decorative Bowl, France 1930s
    By Cristal, Nancy
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    This impressive sculptural Art Deco crystal centerpiece, or decorative bowl, was hand-crafted in France in the 1930s. The modernist streamlined rectangular shape boasts a deep geomet...
    Category

    Vintage 1930s French Art Deco Centerpieces

    Materials

    Crystal

Recently Viewed

View All