Exquisite & rare antique to vintage French ODIOT hallmarked sterling silver 4pc coffee & tea set, a gorgeous service with coffee & teapot, covered sugar & creamer and all in remarkable condition with a French Empire style pattern including palmette & lion's paw cabriole style legs, amphora shaped bodies and figural spouts! Beautiful all! The set consists of a tall 30oz capacity coffee pot, 36oz tea pot, sugar caddy and creamer and all as near pristine as one could hope for. Overly heavy, too, the set has a total weight of 2236 grams or 72 troy ounces! Several spots on each bear the post-1878 French Minerve or Minerva hallmark, the tiny number "1" within those marks means they're all in .950 silver (95% pure so higher than the .925 standard for "sterling" silver). All pieces bear hallmarks for Maison ODIOT, this particular style was used between 1906-1956. Odiot, maker to royalty, highly sought after and long lauded for only the finest of the fine. A magnificent and rare complete set, don't miss it!
ODIOT: (ref from Wikipedia) Maison Odiot, in English "House of Odiot", was established in 1690, during the reign of Louis XV by Jean-Baptiste Gaspard Odiot, considered a fine silversmith.
Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte gave Jean-Baptiste Claude, grandson of Jean-Baptiste Gaspard, many prestigious commissions for himself and his family, such as the sacred scepter and sword and the King of Rome's cradle. Immense dinner services were ordered by Pauline Borghèse, by her mother and by the Emperor himself.
Jean-Baptiste Claude was influenced by the return of the classical Greek and Egyptian motifs as expressed in the Directoire and Empire styles. Court commissions help further the reputation of Maison Odiot, and the firm provided vermeil services to courts across European.
Charles Nicolas Odiot, who excelled in the rocaille style, succeeded his father and became the purveyor by appointment to His Majesty the King Louis-Philippe and to the Royal Family of Orleans.
He was later succeeded by his son Gustave who received the House of Odiot's most important commission ever, id est, 3,000 pieces of solid gold flatware for Saïd Pacha, the Viceroy of Egypt. He later became the purveyor by appointment to the court of His Imperial Majesty the Tsar. Gustave was also the last member of the Odiot family to preside over the company.
The only surviving work by him dating from before the French Revolution (1789–95) is a coffee urn (Monticello, Virginia, Jefferson Foundation) designed and commissioned by Thomas Jefferson.
In 1802 he was awarded a gold medal in the third Exposition de l’Industrie in Paris. He executed a travelling service (c. 1795–1809) for Napoleon and a large table service (1798–1809; Munich, Residenz) for Maximilian I of Bavaria (1756–1825). Odiot’s most complex work was a set of dressing-table furniture made for Empress Marie Louise in 1810.
Very good to excellent condition. Possibly a tiny dimple or two but, as you can see, there are no large dents, no damage or repairs to note. The handle of the taller coffee pot appears to have a repaired crack (glued break) and I'll try to get an enlarged photo with white background so it's visible (but it really isn't all that noticeable). All in thick, heavy old French sterling silver, the total weight of the four pieces is 72 troy ounces or 2236 grams. See pictures for individual weights and measurements.
