The upcoming Classical Arts auction will present numerous objects from the collection of a Lorrain amateur.

This collection includes over thirty ceramic pieces, notably Sèvres porcelains, but also an exceptional covered terrine in the shape of a wild boar's head from the 18th century.
Zoomorphic terrines were highly fashionable in the 18th century: these covered containers preserved the heat of the food and served as the centerpiece of dining sets. In this role as a central piece, the terrine focused on the ornamental and formal explorations of faience manufacturers, becoming a manifestation of new and technically remarkable creations.

COVERED TERRINE IN THE SHAPE OF A WILD BOAR'S HEAD
Finely painted faience entirely in trompe l'oeil as if it had just been hunted: the mouth slightly open, the tongue visible, the ears and tusks protruding, the eyes half-closed, and the ears folded back.
The snout is treated with great realism as if it had dug before being killed. Strasbourg, under the direction of Paul Hannong, 18th century, between 1745-1754.
Length of the container: 46 cm - Width: 25.5 cm
Length of the lid: 44 cm - Width: 41 cm
(Two missing tusks, a crack in the container, enamel losses)

It was the Hoechst faience factory, founded in 1746, which first had the idea of transcribing animals in faience and disguising terrines as if they were alive. And it was in Strasbourg, under the direction of Paul Hannong, that this art reached its peak with the sculptor-modelers Jean Guillaume Lanz and Jean Louis.

These animal-shaped terrines, with striking realism, were the prerogative of the greatest patrons such as the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne Clemens August (1700-1761), whose service was delivered in 1751 and was probably inaugurated during the first princely hunts of the autumn. This remarkable service consisted of about six hundred pieces and included a significant number of animal-shaped terrines, including "A wild boar's head"...

CLASSICAL ARTS
Auction March 23, 2023 Aguttes Neuilly

Expert of the Furniture & Objets d'Art department
Grégoire de Thoury
+33 1 41 92 06 46 • thoury@aguttes.com