Getty Museum

Inkstand and Paperweights

Unknown

Date

about 1715

Medium

Gilt bronze

Culture

French

Department

Decorative Arts

Institution

Getty Museum

The three vessels on the tray originally contained ink, sand for blotting, and a sponge for cleaning the pen nib in the center. Very rarely are the original paperweights found still together with their inkstand. In 1689 and again in 1709, Louis XIV ordered his subjects to turn in their possessions made of precious metals so that they could be melted down to finance his numerous war debts. Searching for a suitable replacement, craftsmen copied items once made of gold or silver in gilt bronze. The form and decoration of this set are similar to works in silver of the same period.

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