Paperweight
19th century
Medium
Glass
Dimensions
Diam.: 7.8 cm (3 1/8 in.)
Classification
paperweight
Department
Applied Arts of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
58934
Art Historical Context
This elegant glass paperweight from the Compagnie de Saint Louis exemplifies the pinnacle of 19th-century French glass. Produced by one of France's oldest and most prestigious crystal manufacturers, founded in 1767 in Lorraine, the piece measures just 7.8 cm in diameter, perfectly sized for a desktop accessory. Its classification within the Applied Arts of Europe the Art Institute of Chicago its status as both a functional object and a work of artistry. In the 19th century paperweights surged in popularity across Europe, coinciding with the rise of the bourgeois office and the need to secure ...
About the Artist
Compagnie de Saint Louis
**Compagnie des Cristalleries de Saint Louis**, founded in 1586 in Münzthal, Lorraine (present-day Saint-Louis-lès-Bitche, France), stands as the oldest glass manufacturer in France and the first to produce crystal glass on the continental European mainland starting in 1781.) Initially focused on window glass and bottles, the company shifted toward luxury crystal production in the 19th century. By...