A SWEDISH GILT-LEAD AND GILTWOOD MIRROR

ATTRIBUTED TO BURCHARD PRECHT, EARLY 18TH CENTURY

Details

The divided shaped rectangular beveled plate within a mirrored divided border, the domed shaped cresting with acanthus-wrapped surround and lambrequined finial with flowerhead-filled trellis sanded mirrored panels, with four later foliate mounts, the vertical flanking borders with shell mounts formerly with candle arms, the lower corners enclosed by acanthus leaves
71 in. (180 cm.) high; 34 1/2 in. (88 cm.) wide; 4 1/4 in. (11 cm.) deep
Lot Essay

With its idiosyncratic arched cresting, confronting C-scrolls, and shell finial, this elegant mirror in gilt-lead is characteristic of the oeuvre of Burchard Precht (d. 1738). The Precht family is synonymous with the production of mirrors in Sweden in the early part of the 18th Century and numerous examples are attributed to either Burchard Precht or his sons Gustav (d. 1763) and Christian (d. 1779). Originally from Bremen, Burchard Precht arrived in Stockholm in 1674 to work at Drottingholm Palace and was named carver to the Swedish Court in 1682. In 1687-88 he travelled to Rome and Paris with Court architect Nicodemus Tessin, a collaboration which strongly influenced his work and led to many ecclesiastical commissions. His sons also achieved great success, Christian becoming an important silversmith in Sweden during the mid-18th Century. A closely related mirror, with identical foliate clasps and etched trellis sanded mirror panels is in the collection at Grönsöö Manor, Enköping, Sweden.
A related mirror was formerly in the Wrightsman collection (F.J.B. Watson, The Wrightsman Collection, II, New York, 1966, no. 209, pl. 395) while comparable examples are illustrated in S. Roche et al., Mirrors, New York, 1985, col. pl. VII and T. Sylvén and E. Welander-Berggren, Speglar: Spegelmakare & Fabrikörer I Sverige 1650-1850, Stockholm, 2000, pp. 194, 196-197.