Dark patinated spelter, black marble, glass
France, circa 1925
Max Le Verrier (1891-1973) – French sculptor
Verso of the bronze signed in the cast ‘M Le Verrier’ and stamped ‘FRANCE’
Figure of a dancer with bob and Egyptian-style garment sitting on an obelisk
Spherical glass shade, etched
Wired for one light
Height: 43.5 cm
Good condition
Figural lamps by the artist Max Le Verrier fetch over €40,000 on international auctions

Egyptian motifs are very popular during the Art Deco period as they have many properties such as symmetry or graphic-geometric patterns, which can be used on decorative objects and are thus ideal to suit the style. The discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun by the British Egyptologist Howard Carter in 1922 engendered a true enthusiasm for Egyptian culture. Especially in France, where this style was already made popular by the Egyptian expeditions of Napoleon at the beginning of the 19th century, these motifs were often used. The French sculptor Max Le Verrier created the table lamp ‘Enigme’ around 1925. A dancer with a ball in her hands sits on an obelisk of black marble in an elegantly balancing pose. The woman is dressed in an Egyptian-style narrow loincloth and wears a bob haircut, which was fashionable in the 1920s. The figure is made of spelter and patinated in a typical cold-green tone imitating bronze.

The table lamp is wired for one light and 43.5 cm high. It is signed on the verso in the cast ‘M Le Verrier’ and stamped ‘FRANCE’. It is in good condition with some signs of age and wear such as minimal abrasions.

Max Le Verrier (1891-1973)

Louis Octave Maxime Le Verrier showed an interest in drawing and sculpture from an early age, carving little objects from wooden rulers. He served as a pilot in the First World War and ended up in a German camp as a prisoner of war. As he was not forced to work he requested tools and clay and started sculpting. In 1917 he was sent to Switzerland where he became acquainted with fellow sculptors Pierre Le Faguays and Marcel André Bouraine. He set up his own studio and created statuettes, mainly nude women, in terra cotta. After the armistice, Le Verrier returned to Paris where he eventually set up his workshop and later his company ‘Maison Max Le Verrier’. He worked in clay, metal and bronze, creating animal figures, statues from live models, ceiling lights, lamps and bookends. The artist enjoyed increasing success and in 1925 he was awarded a gold medal at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs Industriels et Modernes in Paris. During WWII his studio was ransacked and the majority of his possessions disappeared but Le Verrier reopened his workshop after the war and continued creating mainly bronze items until his death. (afa)

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