Presentation silver tastevin with a medal of Louis XV, Paris, 19th century

Date

19th century

Origin

France, Paris

Materials

Silver

Dimensions

Diameter: 9 cm

Presentation silver tastevin, made in Paris in the 19th century in a historicist style. Its flared circular bowl features repoussé decoration alternating fleurs-de-lys and baluster-shaped cartouches adorned with rosettes, emphasized at the base by a twisted frieze. Set into the bottom of the bowl is a commemorative silver medal, engraved by Jean Duvivier for the birth of Louis, Duke of Burgundy, in 1751. Its obverse shows the laureate bust of Louis XV accompanied by the legend “LUD. XV. REX CHRISTIANISS.”; the reverse, visible on the underside of the vessel, depicts Religion presenting the child to France beneath the legend “PROLE ET PARTU FELIX”. The perimeter of the medal is enhanced by a collar engraved with foliate arcades and bordered by small bosses. The openwork handle brings together two confronted dolphins, with scaled bodies and tails intertwined into a ring, a motif referring to the Dauphin of France.