A LARGE SILVER-GILT, ENAMEL AND HARDSTONES MONSTRANCE BY THOMAS-JOSEPH ARMAND CALLIAT, LYON, CIRCA 1860, WITHIN ORIGINAL FITTED CASE | A large silver-gilt, enamel and hardstones monstrance by Thomas-Joseph Armand Calliat, Lyon, circa 1860, within original fitted case

on a circular polylobed foot, with dogs in high relief and acanthus leaves frieze with enamels, the stem with Saints nammed in their halo under arches, foliate scrolls in enamel on a black background, on one side of the top the Madonna and Child and on the other side St Joseph, both resting on a blue enameled celestial globe surrounded by a saint and angels, the window shaped as a sun  under an enamled temple, th ewhole surrounded by foliate scrolls, saints in prayer nammed in their halo, on the top the Holy Father sitting on a throne resting on the symbols of the four Evangelists and surmounted by a red enameled cross

In overall good condition some minor loss to coloured glasses and enamels, one saint with its halo missing, some elements moving (2 moving flowers on leaf on the base, all the angels are moving, 1 branch is moving and needs to be re soldered and approximately 4 Saints are moving), consistent with age and handling. The foot is applied with a sentence taken from St John's Gospel, 15-5: EGO SUM VITIS VOS PALMITES QUI MANET IN ME ET EGO IN EO HIC FERT FRUCTUM MULTUM QUIA SINE ME NIHIL OTESTIS FACERE, signifying : I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit, apart from me you can do nothing. (Moi, je suis la vigne, et vous, les sarments. Celui qui demeure en moi et en qui je demeure, celui-là porte beaucoup de fruits, car, en dehors de moi, vous ne pouvez rien faire). The case stamped inside each door ARMAND-CALLIAT ORFEVRE A LYON with some chips to black leather with associated missing areas. Very impressive size, very nice quality.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot provided by Sotheby's. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colours and shades which are different to the lot's actual colour and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation because Sotheby's is not a professional conservator or restorer but rather the condition report is a statement of opinion genuinely held by Sotheby's. For that reason, Sotheby's condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot.

The maker's mark from Armand-Calliat's Lyonnais workshop used here is ACS and a bee, in use after 7 November 1854, date of the corporation between Thomas-Joseph Armand and his wife Jeanne Calliat, daughter of the goldsmith François Calliat, with his sister-in-law Louise-Nicole Calliat. This mark lasted after Thomas-Joseph's death in 1901, until 1907. During the second half of the 19th century, the Armand-Calliat workshop shared with Poussielgue-Rusand, settled in the Saint-Sulpice district in Paris, almost all the production of France's holy artworks in precious metals. Armand-Calliat added to its metropolitan production a major exportation, especially to South America. Emboldened via meeting in 1858 with Pierre Bossan, Fourvière's future architect, his development was considerable and his works, often enamelled, spread worldwide. He supplied the episcopate, the major pilgrimage centers and the large religious congregations presented abroad like the Jesuits or Dominicans. He won several awards at Universal Expositions, such as London in 1862 and Paris in 1867.

The huge size of this monstrance and the richness of its decor render it an exceptional item.