So I am a kind of 3rd party dealer on EBay. Essentially friends and family give me their stuff, I research it to determine value and then sell their items. I get a percentage of the profits and they get rid of “Stuff” they no longer want. To that end a friend recently brought me these two small framed art pieces. Research has provided plenty of information on the artist (Andrieu, F.) as imprinted on them but I am unconvinced that these are original artworks. They “feel” like mass produced decorations. That being said, I have been unable to find others like them anywhere so they can’t really be mass productions. Weird right? They originally came from an estate and have been in storage for 30 years give or take. Each is a 3.5” square, brass framed, thin glass covered. They are not medallions, they are not wood but I cannot determine what they are made out of, seem to be pressed into plaster sort of. The backing is cork and stamped FAENZA. Any and all thoughts are appreciated!
Welcome to the forum, Lisa. Faenza is a town in Italy. Faience is named after Faenza, so they could be ceramic. They feature Napoleon and his wife Josephine, it looks like they are based on Napoleonic coins
Hi and WELCOME to the Forums, Lisa! Also, you can go back in by clicking on 'Edit' and just clicking on the VERY TOP IMAGE in the stack of images.....it says "post every image full size".....that way we all see better FULL size images than the thumbnails produce right in your post!! Thanks!! I'm sure someone here will give you better info than I could, and it sounds like your friends are keeping you busy!!!! EDIT: I'm wondering, since you mentioned they have a thin glass covering, if they might be well kept, but made of like a plaster, although bronze would be nice???? Are they heavy or not??
The artist Andrieu is famous for his medals. And some bas relief items but I am still not convinced that these are originals. They seem to be pressed.
The F is not a first initial; it is for the Latin fecit, meaning Andrieu made it. Agree with you that they are decorative reproductions, quite likely gilt plaster. For a discussion of the lady, see: http://www.coinbooks.org/v20/esylum_v20n01a21.html
These may be based on the same medals, but also are reproductions. This site is in French. https://fr.numista.com/forum/topic64191.html I believe this gives information on the original medals. I have not run it through a translator: http://www.seidel-und-sohn.de/bertrand-andrieu---napoleon-und-josephine.html
Thanks for the link. Gilt plaster sounds about right based on the look, feel and weight of these. What I am still struggling with is that I cannot find others like them anywhere. Typically repros are mass produced and easy to find on multiple auction sites, but I cannot find others like these anywhere. How do I value them for sale?
French is the only other language I do understand! The conversation is about some framed medals she had also attributed to Andrieu. She also claims that she is related to the artist. Sadly mine are definitely not medals.
No need to apologize. Any and all information is good information. The more I learn the better I get at my work.
I am fairly sure they are some type of pressed plaster. They are light in weight, definitely not bronze (wish they were!)
Hi, Thank you for bringing these to our attention. I have several very similar items that are gilded plaster. I always thought mine were from France. I will have to look them up, have not seen them for 8 or 9 years. Oh good another inspection tour of the lost worlds of greg. greg
