Gilt Bronze Chandelier with Female Mascarons and Six Arms. French Work by Lucien Gau. Circa 1920

This chandelier is organised around a finely fluted gilt bronze baluster shaft, adorned in its central section with applied female mascarons and ending in a tapered finial. Six double-scroll light arms escape from it, punctuated with swirling rosettes and carrying gadrooned candle cups with faux candles. The upper part is completed by a crown of foliate palmettes and a fluted cup of the finest effect.

This Neoclassical vocabulary - antique-style mascarons, fluting, scrolls and palmettes - is characteristic of the productions of French bronziers at the turn of the 20th century, heirs to the great tradition of Parisian gilt bronze of the 18th century.

Condition report: Good general condition. Gilt bronze with a fine even patina, gilding slightly softened by time as is fitting. Electricity checked by an electrician. A chandelier of character, perfect in an entrance hall, a sitting room or a classic dining room.