Émile GALLÉ, Precious Egyptian Ship, a rare earthenware piece

A ceramist and glassmaker, Gallé was one of the greatest names in the Art Nouveau movement and the founder of the Ecole de Nancy. This bowl in glazed earthenware, with its rich polychrome decoration enriched with gold spangles, was inspired by Pharaonic Egypt. Shaped like an Egyptian ship, our bowl is richly decorated with symbols linked to this mythical oriental culture: a scarab, a lotus and geometric ornaments. The Musée d’Orsay holds a drawing by Gallé of a fancy insect, known as a “trucsal”, identical to the one on our bowl.

Egyptian inspiration provided a repertoire of motifs and shapes for artists in the second half of the 19th century. Exoticism and the Orient were in fashion at the Universal Exhibitions, which made Gallé famous and internationally recognised. To date, only two examples of this model are known to exist.