Offered by Le Cabinet d'Amateur
A rare Sèvres porcelain "biscuit" representing "Paris" the Trojan prince, wearing his Phrygian cap, leaning on a tree trunk with his shepherd's crook at his feet. He holds in his right hand the golden apple which must designate among the goddesses: Hera, Aphrodite and Athena, the most beautiful of them.
"Paris" grants the apple to Aphrodite, goddess of love, who promises him in exchange, the love of the most beautiful woman in the world "Helen" wife of Menelaus king of Sparta.
He seduces Helen and flees with her to Troy.
To avenge this affront Menelaus, his brother Agamemnon and Nestor decide to launch a military expedition to Troy; it is the beginning of the Trojan War.
This cookie is directly inspired by the sculpture "the shepherd Paris" made by Nicolas François Gilet (1709 - 1791) for his admission to the Royal Academy of Sculpture in 1752. This sculpture is today preserved in the Louvre Museum, see photo in appendix.
It is signed on the base "B" for Jean Jacques Bachelier, chief modeler then artistic director in Vincennes who will continue his activity in Sèvres.
Nicolas François Gilet was a member of Sigisbert Adam's Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in Nancy.
He then worked in Rome for 6 years. Back in France he joined the Royal Academy of Sculpture before leaving for Russia to teach sculpture, he will stay there for 20 years!
He was a member of the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts of Saint Petersburg.
In perfect condition this cookie was made between 1766 and 1773.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
