A Louis XVI gilt-bronze mounted sardoine and alabaster tazza circa 1790

the base mounted with four ram's heads on monopodia feat legs with a central support entwined by a serpent on a marble base

This extremely elegant mounted tazza is in very good condition, with minor marks and scratches to the base, with minimal chips to the upper corners. There is one small internal crack to the tazza less than one cm long that seems to be very old and does not appear to reach the surface. Three of the four gilt-bronze mounts to the base are slightly loose. The gilt-bronze is slightly tarnished in places as expected.
"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:

Various Authors, Musée du Louvre: Nouvelles acquisitions du Département des objets d'art, 1985-1989, Paris, 1991, pp. 160-61. 

A. Tuetey, "Inventaire des laques anciennes et des objets de curiosité de Marie-Antoinette, confiés à Daguerre et Lignereux, marchands bijoutiers, le 10 octobre 1789", in Archives de l'art français, T. 8, Paris, 1916, pp. 286-319. 

This tazza relates to a perfume-burner attributed to Pierre Gouthière (1732 - 1813) after a design by François-Joseph Belanger (1744 - 1818). Made for the Duc d'Aumont around 1775, this was later purchased by Queen Marie-Antoinette, and is now in the Wallace Collection, London (F292). 

The Queen of France owned a group of such objets montées, often in precious stones or antique porcelain that were mounted to the taste of the 1780s, influenced by the discoveries of Pompeii and Herculaneum. These included, but were certainly not limited to, a coupe in jaspe sanguin now in the Louvre (OA 11172, ill. here in Fig. 1) of similar proportions to the present tazza, and a gilt-bronze mounted Celadon vase also in the Louvre (OA 5267). 

These objects were entrusted by the Queen to the marchand Daguerre in October 1789, and figure in the inventory drawn by the Commission des Arts in 1793, which included "un vase en sardoine reposant sur quatre pieds et têtes de bélier dressés sur un socle en jaspe orné aux quatre angles de grains de chapelet en sardoine".