Napoleon III period Sèvres porcelain and gilt-bronze mantel garniture

Dating from the Napoleon III period, this Parisian mantel garniture comprises a central clock and two candlesticks. The clock, fitted with a Paris movement, is surmounted by a Sèvres porcelain urn and features a dial with Roman numerals decorated with angels, flanked by lion heads and painted plaques depicting cupids. The two candlesticks, each 39 cm high, also incorporate porcelain urns with a sky-blue ground decorated with portraits of young girls in profile. The ensemble combines chased gilt bronze with painted porcelain decoration characteristic of 19th-century Parisian production.