Pair of Napoleon III glasses. France, ca. 1850

Pair of Napoleon III glasses. France, ca. 1850.
Carrara marble; gilded bronze.
Measurements: 55 cm. high.

Elegant pair of goblets rising on a quadrangular base with guilloche-adorned fronts. On this, the marble foot is framed with a bronze application of floral motifs, while the ovoid body is girded at the top with an intertwined vegetal frieze. The whole culminates in an ornamented upper finial, with a convex profile and decorated with stylized leaves.

However, the most outstanding element are the handles in the form of intertwined snakes, of fine modeling, which adhere to the body of the vase with naturalness.