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Michel Lacoste's Donation: Precious Metalwork from Pierre Mangot to Jean-Elisee Puiforcat
Around one hundred pieces of precious French metalwork from the 16th to 20th centuries, donated by Michel Lacoste, showcasing the technical skill and refinement of French silversmiths.
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Michel Lacoste's collection began with a sale catalogue. His maternal grandmother gave him the catalogue of the Puiforcat collection, and the youngest son of tennis player René Lacoste went on to collect French silver from the 2000s. A hundred pieces, a quarter of it, now belong to the Louvre. If your only Lacoste is a polo shirt with a crocodile on it, this is the family's other collection.
You find them inside the cases of room 605, mixed in with the Louvre's own silver and faience. A visitor on the Connaissances de Versailles forum noted they stand on blue bases, which is how you tell them apart. The spread is lopsided: one 16th-century piece, 22 from the 17th century, 76 from the 18th and one from the 20th. The 17th-century group adds most, with makers the Louvre didn't own before, such as Jean-Baptiste Chéret.
The museum gives it 15 minutes, in the Sully wing on level 1, and entry is included in the Louvre ticket.
Look for
Claude II Ballin's candle branch
A silver branch for two candles, made in Paris around 1735, the piece the Louvre uses to introduce the show.
Louis XV's seal box
A solid-silver box for a wax seal, engraved with the arms of France and Navarre and Louis XV's monogram.
The blue bases
Look for the blue mounts inside the room 605 cases: they mark Lacoste's pieces among the Louvre's own silver and faience.
Good for
- An Hour Or Less
- Locals Who've Seen It All
- Nerding Out
About 15 min
Skip if
You want a stand-alone exhibition: these are pieces mixed into the cases of a permanent room.
Also at Louvre
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Image credits
9
- Michel Lacoste's Donation: Precious Metalwork from Pierre Mangot to Jean-Elisee PuiforcatCourtesy of Louvre
- The Harvest Season - Ibrahim MahamaCourtesy of Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain
- The World According to PennCourtesy of Bourse de Commerce - Pinault Collection
- Remember MeCourtesy of Bourse de Commerce - Pinault Collection
- LouvreBenh Lieu Song, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporainChabe01, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- MAD - Musée des Arts DécoratifsGFreihalter / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Bourse de Commerce - Pinault CollectionChabe01, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Monnaie de Paris - musée du 11 ContiPHGCOM / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0