Manufacture de Baccarat Cut crystal centerpiece...

Manufacture de Baccarat Cut crystal centerpiece attributed to Baccarat France Circa 1870 Crystal, Silver-plated bronze Oval bowl : Height. 15 cm; L: 42 cm; W: 25 cm Circular bowls: Height: 11.5 cm; Diameter: 25 cm Elegant centerpiece composed of a large central oval bowl and two circular bowls, in cut crystal decorated with stylized palmettes on a squared background, resting on a silvered bronze frame depicting flowering branches. Between 1764 and 1860, with rare exceptions, the Cristallerie de BACCARAT did not sign its works. The first paper labels appeared in 1860, depicting within a circle a carafe surrounded by a stemmed glass and a beaker, with BACCARAT written above. From 1875 onwards, the brand name "BACCARAT" in stick letters and in relief appears on certain blown models and on the bronze parts of the mounts. From 1936 onwards, the carafe surrounded by a stemmed glass and a tumbler, with "BACCARAT" marked above, appeared systematically on all production. Biography: The famous Baccarat crystal works, whose origins date back to the 18th century, won its first gold medal at the 1823 Exposition des Produits de l'Industrie, where it was hailed for the "brilliance and finesse of its crystal" and became France's leading crystal works. Baccarat was undoubtedly the only French industry to be consistently and masterfully represented at the various exhibitions in which it participated, winning honors and prestigious awards in the process. One key word, "perfection of material and cut", recurs in all the reports of the World's Fairs between 1855 and 1867, where the Baccarat crystal works dominate for the quality of their crystal, judged superior to that of Bohemia and England.