Beaker Celebrating the Birth of the King of Rome

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Beaker Celebrating the Birth of the King of Rome

ManufacturerPROBABLY Verrerie de Vonêche (1778-1816)

Dateabout 1809 (glass), 1811 (engraving)

DimensionsH: 3 5/16 in. (8.4 cm); Rim Diam: 2 7/8 in. (7.3 cm); Base Diam: 2 ¾ in. (7.0 cm)

MediumGlass; mold-blown, cut, copper-wheel engraved, applied rim.

ClassificationGlass

Credit LineMr. and Mrs. George M. Jones, Jr. Fund

Object number

2011.4

On View

Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion (2444 Monroe Street), Glass Pavilion Gallery, 4

DescriptionStraight-sided lead glass beaker decorated with a cut diamond pattern radiating from the center of the base and extending one-fourth up the wall, with four copper-wheel engraved profile portraits facing left and a band of stylized ivy between matte ribbons (all in “Mattschnitt”) below the applied, milled silver-gilt rim.

Label TextThis beaker commemorates the baptism of Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte’s only son and legitimate heir at Nôtre Dame Cathedral in Paris on June 10, 1811. The infant Napoléon François Joseph Charles (1811–1832) had received the title King of Rome by the French legislature upon his birth. Portrayed in profile are the young Prince Imperial and his parents, Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte and Empress Marie-Louise. Also shown is his maternal grandfather, Emperor Francis I of Austria (1768–1835), to reference the baby’s royal lineage. The elegant beaker was probably a royal commission engraved for the occasion.Published ReferencesOstergard, Derek (ed.), The Sèvres Porcelain Manufactory: Alexandre Brongniart and the Triumph of Art and Industry, 1800-1847, New Haven and London: 1997, p. 199, no. 30.Comparative ReferencesSee also For the medals see Millin, Aubin Louis, and Millingen, James V., Medallic history of Napoleon: A collection of all the medals, coins and jettons relating to his actions and reign, 1796-1815, London, 1819, esp. p. 89, pl. 269 (Napoleon laureate), pl. 270 (roi de Rome).