Quite Contrary

Art history nerd Mostly I'm here for the naked men tho.

[archimaps]

Map of Versailles in 1714

[myalteregohasclass]

[ohmy80s]

Rooms @ The Overlook / The Shining (1980)

[vintagelasvegas]

Backstage at Folies Bergere, Tropicana. Las Vegas, 1969. Bettmann archives.

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[in-the-middle-of-a-daydream]

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild

[ducissatenebrarum]

 Skull watch by John Monnier, 1812–1828

18k gold skull watch dates to 1812–1828 and had diamonds for teeth and eyes.  The enameled skull opens up to reveal the watch face and there is a small glass port under the skull to watch the movement operate.  This watch sold recently for $18,000.

[marylibra]

Gaming Set

c. 1735

Du Paquier Porcelain Manufactory 

Austria

Hard-paste porcelain, polychrome enamels, gilt mounts, and diamonds

This richly decorated gaming box ranks among the most exceptional works of art produced by the Du Paquier Porcelain Manufactory during its short twenty-five-year existence. Mounted with gold plaques and painted with colored enamels and gilding, the box opens to reveal four small, similarly decorated porcelain containers. These smaller boxes are mounted with gold and set with diamonds; each, when opened, reveals two types of porcelain gambling chips. The boxes were painted according to a complex, tightly organized decorative scheme. The lid of the large box depicts three trompe l’oeil playing cards that appear to have been carelessly thrown down. Each of the corners of the box and lid is painted with a network of violet and gold ornaments characteristic of the factory’s mature, late-Baroque style. With its liberal use of gold and diamonds, this work was certainly among the most extravagant objects crafted at the Du Paquier manufactory. The box may have been presented as a diplomatic gift, perhaps from the Austrian Habsburgs to their Russian Romanov counterparts.

Information from: www.artic.edu

[claygoblin]

The Silver Swan, built by John Joseph Merlin and James Cox, 1773.

Source: Mechanical Marvels, Clockwork Dreams (BBC)

[soundssimpleright]

oh wow, the “water” is an illusion created by spinning glass rods.

wooooooooooah

[wishfishy]

I will reblog this automaton every single time I see it because I adore it and you cannot stop me.

[ghostly-light]

The Silver Swan can be seen at The Bowes Museum in County Durham, England. More about it here.

They still run it, once daily at 2pm. It’s an amazing piece, and I hope to see it one day.

[marylibra]

Glass table & boat

Baccarat

1889

Cut glass sculpture in the form of a boat mounted on a glass table with a marble top, pressed, cut; assembled on metal frame. 

Boat designed by Charles Vital Cornu.

[met-european-sculpture]

Seasons and Elements (Summer) (set of four) by Charles Le Brun, European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Rogers Fund, 1946 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY Medium: Canvas; silk, wool, and metal-thread embroidery in tent stitch (316 stitches per sq. inch, 49 per sq. cm.)

http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/199706

[roserosette]

The Boy Friend, 1971, Ken Russell

[historyarchaeologyartefacts]

“Cup and Cover in the form of a Partridge” Nuremberg, 1598-1602 CE [876x1500]

[amislouisxvi]

The Sunflower Clock. The clock face is surrounded by wonderful porcelain flowers.

[theladyintweed]

25 Bedroom Chateau in Dordogne, France for Sale 

Owned by the same family since the 12th century 

500 hectares of countryside 

Chateau originally from the 12th century, rebuilt in 1740 

Outbuildings including luxury stables 

Sold with some of its exquisite original furnishings 

[ohmy80s]

Rooms @ The Overlook / The Shining (1980)

[theredheadfromvirginia-deactiva]

[theredheadfromvirginia-deactiva]