Art Deco French Alabaster Bookends Pair with Colorful Metal Birds

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Art Deco French Alabaster Bookends Pair with Colorful Metal Birds

About the Item

We kindly suggest you read the whole description, because with it we try to give you detailed technical and historical information to guarantee the authenticity of our objects. Peculiar and original pair of Art Deco-style bookmarks; they were produced in a craft workshop in Saint-Ouen, a quaint suburb of Paris, France, between 1930 and 1935; the Master Craftsmen executed them with a sophisticated casting of a metal alloy, then finished them by hand giving the birds a delicate and graceful shape down to the smallest details. They succeeded in subjecting the metal to their artistic sensibility by creating two unique and fantastic objects. Then, with their trademark inventiveness and sensitivity, they subjected them to a delicate and complex treatment with special and secret acids to make them take on elegant bronze hues; to make their creations even more precious and refined, the craftsmen attached the two birds to a thick slab of fine, bright white alabaster; another thinner slab was attached perpendicular to the other so that the two objects could serve the function of elegant and practical bookends. Alabaster is the name given to a type of rock of chalky or calcitic origin; the most common alabaster is yellow-brown in color, while white alabaster is among the most prized forms and is Italian excellence from the city of Volterra. The Tuscan town of Volterra, the cradle of the Etruscan Civilization, has always been considered an illustrious point of reference for alabaster quarrying and working. Volterra alabaster is recognized as one of the finest in the world; in fact, it is imported as raw material or handcrafted by Volterra masters, in all countries in Europe and beyond. Alabaster is a material that leaves little traces of magic around it. It is magical in its continual and unpredictable mutability, in the fragility that exposes it like glass to shattering shocks, in the indolent abandon with which, albeit very slowly, it is penetrated by water, in its appearance as glass, like stone, like salt, like a jewel; and more so in its ability to be born, grow and age over time like a living thing. All the material that is exported from Volterra both worked and raw, is subjected to polishing and finishing exclusively by the artisans of Volterra, in fact, only they have a historical familiarity with this fascinating material, and only they can perform to perfection these two operations that are the most important and basic to bring out the qualities of alabaster, only after these interventions alabaster completely shows its aesthetic characteristics (the play of transparencies, color, veins) and offers itself to the touch with its extraordinary velvet effect. The items are in good condition. They have a light green velvet under the base. Measures each width cm.16, depth cm.7, height cm.11. For all our shipments we use special packaging materials (wooden crates, styrofoam, etc.) for maximum protection and safety of the objects.

Dimensions:
Height: 4.34 in (11 cm)Width: 6.3 in (16 cm)Depth: 2.76 in (7 cm)
Sold As:
Set of 2
Style:
Art Deco (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Alabaster,Metal,Bronzed,Polished
Place of Origin:
France
Period:
Mid-20th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1930-1935
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. The items are in good condition. They have a light green velvet under the base.
Seller Location:
Prato, IT
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU4632229353192