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NEW YORK — Creating a memorable culinary experience for family and friends is about much more than the meal — it’s about the tablescape, too. Even in the modern age, when formal dinners have largely been replaced with informal meals or food grabbed on the go, setting a table with real silver has never gone out of style. One of the most prominent silversmiths still around is the renowned French firm Christofle, which Charles Christofle founded in 1830 in Paris. The company, which acquired or developed innovative techniques for electroplating and gilding, soon became sought after for its silver (both sterling and plate) flatware, trays, covered dishes, candelabra and serving pieces. Emperor Napoleon III and his wife ordered a 4,000-piece service in 1851, and many of the influential guests they entertained then purchased Christofle services.
Christofle has released many flatware patterns, and among its most desirable contemporary patterns is Sceaux, which has a fiddle-shaped handle and shell motif. A 148-piece set doubled the high end of its $6,000-$9,000 estimate when it attained $18,000 in July 2021 at New Orleans Auction Galleries. “It had everything going for it,” said Charles C. Cage, a fine silver specialist at New Orleans Auction Galleries.“It was in spectacular condition, probably had never been used, and it was a huge set. Also, it was sterling, and that is very rare. They certainly had made sterling flatware for a long time, but you don’t see it turn up on the market nearly as much as the plate.”
Vintage and antique flatware is perennially desirable and holds its value. A 319-piece sterling Bagatelle flatware service by Christofle that earned $13,750 in April 2023 at John Moran Auctioneers, Inc., is typically among the highest-selling vintage services seen online. The circa-1970s set in vermeil sterling is marked for Cardeilhac and Christofle, as in 1951 Christofle acquired fellow French silversmith Cardeilhac, which was noted for its Rococo-style wares.
Silver-makers, not surprisingly, paid mind to what competitors were doing, and after Tiffany & Co. introduced its Japanese-influenced mixed metal wares at the 1878 Paris Exposition, Christofle came out with several fine pieces incorporating mixed metals. A .950 silver and mixed metal tea set brought $13,000 plus the buyer’s premium in April 2020 at Taylor & Harris. The circa-1880 service is spot-hammered and boasts applied decoration of gilt wisteria and copper bamboo. Additionally, the covers of the teapot and sugar bowl are adorned with applied copper butterflies.
Interestingly, Christofle produced far less in mixed metals than Tiffany and created more exposition pieces than those for public consumption, Cage explained. But in the 1870s and 1880s, all the big silver makers were offering mixed metal products, and Cage adds “much of that was inspired by opening up trade with Japan because it was so radically different, with Japanese metalworking traditions like shakudo. I think they were all following the Japanese trend, which was getting away from the overdesigned mid-19th century look, an eclectic combination of earlier historical styles. The Japanese taste was so wildly different that it was just something new and exciting.”
The market for Christofle has long been robust and shows no signs of slowing, given how seldom standout pieces and complete flatware sets appear at market. “It’s as strong as it has ever been. It’s a guaranteed sale if we’re going to get one of those large nice sets of Christofle, but we can always sell the good silverplate — nice platters and covered dishes are really strong because they last forever,” Cage said. “What’s very rare are the big designs and designers. You almost never see those come up at auction, but when they do, they bring a lot of money when they are well-recorded pieces.”
Unusual larger serving pieces are indeed highly coveted. Used for placing an item to cook, such as a cheesecake, or using cold water to keep food cold, the rechaud/bain marie de salle (water bath) was a fixture in many 19th-century homes. A Christofle example on a mahogany base dating to the second half of the 19th century took €8,800 ($8,682) plus the buyer’s premium in March 2017 at Carlo Bonte Auctions.
Besides its sterling silver, Christofle silverplate remains highly prized due to its quality. “Their quality of plate is much, much better than anyone else’s,” Cage said. “We sell pieces that are 100 years old that are in as good condition as when they came out of Christofle.”
A silverplate champagne server sold well above its $500-$800 estimate in August 2020 to achieve $5,500 at New Orleans Auction Galleries. Dating to the first quarter of the 20th century, the server has a bucket-form body with a crested handle and a locking collar and is finely decorated with flat-chased grapevine banding.
Christofle attracted several high-profile designers and creatives such as Man Ray, Cocteau, Christian Fjerdingstad and Andrée Putman to design pieces for the firm. Their works are choice and seldom appear at auction today. Performing far above estimate was a pair of Flèche (arrow) silverplated candlesticks, designed by Gio Ponti in 1928, which realized $5,500 plus the buyer’s premium in May 2021 at Toomey & Co. Auctioneers. Ponti had a strong partnership with Christofle, starting when he designed the L’ange Volant villa outside of Paris for Tony Bouilhet, who was the head of the company in the 1920s. Ponti also designed candelabra, sconces and coffee pots in the famous Flèche pattern for the villa.
Done in the Rococo style, a 19th-century Christofle figural centerpiece in silver-plated bronze also outperformed its estimate at $9,500 plus the buyer’s premium in February 2022 at Ahlers & Ogletree Auction Gallery. This lavishly decorated statement piece, standing 18in tall, has a reticulated navette-form basket with scrolled acanthus decoration and swans being chased by an otter in a natural setting.
Collectors and buyers continue to cherish Christofle silver for its quality and aesthetic decoration, which is luxurious without being overly fussy. “Hands down, the quality is extremely good, and the designs are classic.” Cage said. “I think those are the two big appeals: the quality, and the simplicity of designs.”
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