A micromosaic and marble topped, gilt-bronze and patinated-bronze guéridon the micromosaic top Italian, attributed to Antonio Aguatti, circa 1810, the base Russian, circa 1820-30, attributed to Alexandre Guerin

the circular top centred by a rectangular tablet tesseraed in piccolo and depicting the Rape of Europa, upon a white ground with foliate arabesques urns to each side emblematic of the Four Seasons within an ivy and entwined ribbon border and a gilt-bronze frieze above a gilt-bronze and patinated-bronze base of anthenienne form with caryatids and stylized acanthus united by a concave collar above a triform base centred by a foliate rosette

Almost certainly Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Grand-Duchess of Baden (1784-1860);
Thence by descent to a European princely family



A full expertise on the gilt-bronze and patinated-bronze base in English by Prof. Dr. Hans Ottomeyer, Berlin, May 2012, is available on request from the department.

This is in overall very good original condition. The colours of the micromosaic are slightly darker with more contrast and vibrancy and the gilding is more golden and attractive than in the catalogue photograph. The detail to the micromosaic is superb. The gilt-bronze is nicely cast and slightly dirty and would benefit from a light clean according to taste. There is a very minor scratch running across the right to left lower section of the micromosaic top which is hardly noticeable. There is a very minor section of micromosaic missing to the top wing of the butterfly to the right of the central panel but this can easily be restored. There is some very minor surface dirt which can easily be cleaned according to taste. There is a very minor section of gilt-bronze shaved off the edge of the gilt-bronze top but this does not detract from the piece.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Comparative Literature:
Charles Truman, The Gilbert Collection of Gold Boxes, Los Angeles, 1991, pp. 126 and 127.
Alvar Gonzales-Palacios, The Art of Mosaics', Los Angeles, 1982, nos. 37 and 38.
Giuseppe Antonio Guattani, Memoriae Enciclopediche sule antichita e belle arti di Roma, 1806, Vol. IV, P.157.
Baron Charles Dupin, Exposition Universelle de 1851: Travaux de la Commission francaise sur l'industrie des nations, 1854, p. 187.
Françoise de Bernardy, Stéphanie de Beauharnais, fille adoptive de Napoléon et grande-duchesse de Bade, Paris 1977.
Exhibition Catalogue, Stephanie Napoleon. Großherzogin von Baden. 1789-1860, Badisches Landesmuseum Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe 1989, pp. 132, 149, 151-154.

The micromosaic top
This extremely well preserved and inventive mosaic top can firmly be attributed to Antonio Aguatti, one of the most celebrated Roman mosaicists, who signed a related mosaic tablet with Cupid-driven chariot that was later set into a Parisian snuff-box circa 1810 (See Truman, op. cit., pp. 126 and 127). Aguatti also signed a table top displaying a Cupid-driven chariot, which is now in the Hermitage (See Gonzales-Palacios, op. cit., nos. 37 and 38).
A table with a virtually identical micromosaic top also attributed to Antonio Aguatti although on a less elaborate and later base, was sold Christie's London, 21st March 2002, lot 265.
Another table with the same micromosaic top also attributed to Aguatti, but featuring Fidelity's triumph to its center and on a less complex wooden base, was sold Christie's, London, 11 June 1998, lot 60.
The central mosaic on the present table top, featuring the rape of Europe, as well as the central panel on the Hermitage table top, featuring a Cupid-driven chariot, are taken from the gouache paintings of the eighteenth century Italian artist Michelangelo Maestri. (d. 1812). Maestri credits his images to Giulio Romano's (1499-1546) Renaissance frescoes after the antique, originally in the Salon of Villa Lante and now in the Palazzo Zuccari. A gouache by Maestri, (sold at Sotheby's New York, 18 April 2008, lot 224) is a match for the central image on the table currently offered (see fig. 1).

Antonio Aguatti (d. 1846)
A member of the dynasty of highly successful mosaicists, Antonio Aguatti (or Aquatti) was noted as being one of the most distinguished micromosaic artists of his era. The first historical mention of him is a citation of 1806 which lists his atelier among only fourteen others in Rome specializing in "mosaico in piccolo". He was laready a master at this date, and had been working in the field of mosaics since the late 18th century, see Guattani, op. cit., p.157). A brilliant artisan, Aguatti's genius was further manifested at an early date by the development of technical innovations which transformed the art of micromosaics. He invented shaped and curved tesserae, refinements that enabled him to reproduce natural textures such as hair, fur, grass and foliage; he made significant improvements in coloration by developing individual tesserae combining multiple hues. These new techniques and materials are all found in the present mosaic, and represent a transition from the neoclassicism of the 18th century to the emerging romanticism of the 19th century. Aguatti is believed to have received his training in the workshop of Cesare Aguatti, one of the most distinguished mosaicists of the second half of the eighteenth century. Antonio Aguatti's skill at depicting animals may have evolved from Cesare Aguatti's mosaics of colorful creatures, such as those of 1784-1785 in the Borghese Palace. Aguatti's studio was located at 96 Piazza di Spagna, an area where mosaic workshops were to proliferate as the nineteenth century progressed and a growing tourist class created a demand for micromosaic souvenirs. His atelier produced a broad spectrum of micromosaic objects. Baron Charles Dupin, President of the French Jury sent to London's 1851 Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, wrote in his report: "From 1810 there were already in Rome twenty mosaicists in miniature: Antonio Aguatti was the most celebrated; he was the master of all the mosaicists engaged in the same industry today." (See Baron Charles Dupin, op. cit., p. 187.) In 1810, during the French occupation of Rome under Napoleon I, A guatti was awarded a price for miniature mosaics at the first Capitoline Exhibition of 'Roman Works of Art and Industry', held at the Campidoglio. After decades of success, Aguatti entered the employment of the Papal Treasury in 1829, and, from 1832 until his death in 1846 he was professor of miniature mosaics at the Vatican Mosaic Workshop.
Today, Aguatti's micromosaics can be found in museums worldwide including the Museo Napoleonico in Rome, the Gilbert Collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum, the British Museum and the Hermitage Museum. Despite his prolific output, relatively few signed pieces by Aguatti are known. Sometimes he signed in tesserae on the lower border, other times he signed only one plaque on the back.

Napoleon and Roman micromosaics
Napoleon and his wife Josephine were avid collectors of micromosaic works of art. It was Pope Pius VII who presented Napoleon with a pair of vases with micromosaic frieze along with a micromosaic-decorated clock as gifts on the occasion of his coronation in Paris in 1804. They were later in Empress Josephine's collection at the Chateau de Malmaison near Paris and are today part of the Gilbert in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.
Following the Napoleonic occupation of Rome in 1808 – 1814, the Vatican Workshops were removed from the jurisdiction of the "Fabbrica di S Pietro" and became directly responsible to the Imperial Crown as the "Studio Imperiale del Mosaico" and were commissioned to furnish Napoleon's apartments at the Palazzo Quirinale in Rome.
It is known that the emperor gave micromosaics as presentation gifts to heads of state, as well as to family members and other notable figures.

The bronze base by Alexander Guerin
The design combined with the superb and beautifully chased quality of the present guéridon base compare best to the features of Alexander Guerin's manufacture in St. Petersburg from 1805 to 1840. He produced various commissions for the Tsar's Court. Together with I. Dinper and Andrei Schreiber, they were the three most prominent gilt-bronze makers in St. Petersburg at the time. Guerin's early works were very much based upon French models, but quickly he established his own style. It is interesting to note that Guerin supplied Maximilian de Beauharnais, 3rd Duke of Leuchtenberg (1817-1852) with bronze works for his appartment in the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg. Maximilian was the son of Eugène de Beauharnais (1781-1824) and thus the grandson of Empress Joséphine (1763-1814). The Duke most likely received the present micromosaic top as a gift himself and subsequently commissioned Guerin to mount it on this exquisite base, before he presented it to his aunt Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Grand Duchess of Baden.

Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Grand-Duchess of Baden (1784-1860) - Napoleon's adopted daughter
The offered guéridon together with following four monumental candelabra (lot 38) almost certainly belonged originally to Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Grand Duchess of Baden and have remained with her descendants ever since.
Stéphanie-Louise-Adrienne de Beauharnais was a distant niece of Empress Josephine's first (guillotined) husband. As his prominence and wealth continued to rise, Napoléon found himself being de facto patron to both the Bonaparte and the de Beauharnais families. As a prominent member of the new Imperial Family, Stéphanie held residence in the Tuileries Palace. Her new status allowed her to live a rather luxurious life. Stéphanie would soon  play a crucial role in Napoleon's effort to secure an alliance with the Prince-elector of Baden. The alliance was to be secured through a marriage between the descendants of the two sovereigns, connecting the two dynasties. The Prince-Elector was to be represented by his grandson, Hereditary Prince Charles of Baden. Napoleon on the other hand lacked legitimate descendants of his own. When he therefore planned to marry off Stéphanie to Charles, the Margravine of Baden complained 'If at least she was of your blood'. Napoléon famously replied "Eh bien, je l'adopte!" and instantly adopted Stéphanie in order to satisfy the future mother-in-law. Thus Stéphanie de Beauharnais became a Princesse française with the qualification of Imperial Highness. The marriage took place in Paris on April 8, 1806. On July 25, 1806 her new grandfather-in-law was named Karl Friedrich, Grand Duke of Baden. He would serve as head to the Confederation of the Rhine. Charles and Stéphanie had a dreary marriage. The prince was a dull man who could not be lured away from the debauchery of his youth by an unwanted wife, and she found life in Baden unspeakably boring after her experience in the imperial household. She knew Percier and Fontaine's dernier cri at Malmaison and the Tuileries and found nothing comparable in Karlsruhe. Stéphanie was able to return to Paris several times, and she traveled to see Napoléon and Josephine whenever they passed through Germany. After the death of the old Grand Duke in 1811, Charles and Stéphanie became Grande Duke and Grand Duchess. Stéphanie subsequently instructed the court architects Friedrich Weinbrenner (1766-1826) and Jakob Friedrich Dyckerhoff (1774-1845) to re-decorate the palaces of Karlsruhe and Mannheim in the Empire style. Dyckerhoff even went on a study trip to Paris in order to familiarize himself with the new style. Many furnishings and especially gilt-bronze works such as candelabra and clocks were ordered directly in Paris. The Grand Duke died on December 8, 1818. Stephanie remained a widow for the rest of her long life. She was reportedly a devoted mother to her three daughters and her residence in Mannheim became a popular Salon for artists and intellectuals. Stephanie died in Nice, France at the age of 71, in 1860, 41 years after her husband.