Géologie Gallé glass vase sold for €95,000 (£82,610) at Beaussant Lefèvre.
Image copyright: Beaussant-Lefèvre/Drouot
Géologie is a baluster-shaped footed double layer satin finished specimen of c.1889 standing 9½in (24cm) high and with a vertical signature to the body and is wheel engraved and hammered with crystals applied to the foot. The decoration is intended to resemble rocks and geological features rather than the flowers or landscapes that form the usual decorative repertoire for this celebrated glassmaker.
Fresh to the market, with a notable provenance, the vase was one of a small group in the auction that formed part of Gallé’s personal collection and had passed down direct through the family. The price at the auction on December 8 was getting on for double the €40,000-60,000 estimate.
From the same source came a large 19½in (50cm) high vase known as Crespuscule (Dusk) of c.1897 decorated in shades of blue, internally decorated with maple leaves and also bearing a Gallé vertical signature. Like many Gallé vases it also featured an engraved poetic inscription, in this case from Victor Hugo: Et l’arbre de la route secoue au vent du soir la poussière du jour.
It ended up making €55,000 (£47,825) against a guide of €30,000-40,000.
