Louis Philippe ice buckets offered for first time

A pair of newly-discovered ice buckets that once belonged to King Louis Philippe of France (1773-1850) are to appear at Bonhams' Fine European Ceramics and Glass auction, which will be held on December 12 in London.

Louis Philippe Sevres Ice Buckets
The ice buckets were intended for use at the king's Tuileries Palace



The Sevres ice buckets will be offered for £8,000-12,000 ($13,000-19,000). They were gifted by Louis Philippe, the last king of France, to his daughter, Queen Louise of Belgium in 1832.

Louis had been on the throne just two years at this point, after spending much of his life in exile. He abdicated in 1848, again living in exile for the rest of his life in Surrey, UK.

Painted by Jean-Baptiste Gabriel Langlace - one of the main painters at the Sevres factory during the first half of the 18th century - the ice buckets depict scenes from the Palais Royal and Chateau de Neuilly. They originally formed part of the "Service pittoresque" and were the most expensive element of the dessert service.

Bonhams' Nette Megens commented: "These ice pails represent an important rediscovery of the largest pieces from the service given by Louis Philippe to his daughter."

In July, a pair of Louis XVI Sevres vases sold at Sotheby's for $2.7m, making a 77.7% increase on estimate and spelling strong results for the present lot. On December 5, one of the world's most important collections of Meissen porcelain sold for $872,000 at Bonhams.

At the top of the auction will be a rare Nymphenburg white chinoiserie figure, which was created circa 1760. Modelled by Franz Anton Bustelli, it is expected to sell for £25,000-35,000 ($40,000-56,000).

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