Antique French Gilt Bronze Fan Photo Frame with Five Miniature Portraits, Louis XVI Style, c. 1880–1900

Antique French Gilt Bronze Fan Photo Frame with Five Miniature Portraits, Louis XVI Style, c. 1880–1900

One of the most charming objects from this trip. Five small circular frames open out like a fan, each one raised on a slender torch-form arm and surrounded by a ribbon-tied laurel wreath in the Louis XVI taste. The arms radiate from a single hub at the base, and the whole piece stands on a folding easel back.

Each of the five frames still holds a period photographic portrait, a mix of children and young women in late Victorian and Edwardian dress, under their original glass. They are exactly as we found them in France and we have left them in place: they give the piece its atmosphere, and they are easily swapped for your own family photographs if you prefer.

Fan-form and multi-aperture frames of this type were made in Paris for the drawing room and the dressing table, and they are much harder to find than single frames. This one would be lovely on a mantel, a console, or layered into a collection of gilt frames.

Details

Origin: France
Period: Late 19th century
Date: Circa 1880–1900
Material: Gilt bronze or gilt brass [confirm], glass, period photographs
Form: Five-aperture fan photograph frame with folding easel back. 
Approximate Measurements
Height: 3.5”
Width: 6.5”
Aperture diameter: 1” each

Condition

Very good antique condition with minimal wear to the gilding. All five glasses present. The period photographs show fading consistent with age and are included as found. Easel back stands securely.

A rare and romantic form, and a wonderful way to display a group of small portraits.