Exhibition labels & didactics - National Gallery of Victoria

Pierre-Philippe THOMIRE
French 1751–1843
Athénienne transformed into a table stand
Athénienne transformée en guéridon
Empire period 1804–15
gilt bronze, porphyry
Fondation Napoléon, Paris
Donation Lapeyre inv. 870
The athénienne is a rare example of
Neoclassical furniture based directly on
surviving ancient examples – in this case,
bronze tripod stands excavated from the
Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.
The athénienne’s tripod base could support
a washbowl, a perfume burner or a jardinière.
This example, by Pierre-Philippe Thomire,
a leading goldsmith under the Empire, has
been converted into a table by the addition
of a porphyry top.
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