Medal Celebrating Sarah Bernhardt

Object Name: 
Medal Celebrating Sarah Bernhardt

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Object Name: 
Medal Celebrating Sarah Bernhardt
Maker(s): 
Place Made: 
France, Paris
Accession Number: 
2011.7.103
Dimensions: 
Overall H: 0.4 cm, Diam (max): 9.8 cm
Location: 
Not on Display
Date: 
about 1896
Credit Line: 
Gift of Elaine and Stanford Steppa
Web Description: 
Lalique gained recognition for his designs by creating jewelry for actresses such as Sarah Bernhardt (1844–1923). Lalique was asked to design a series of silver medallions bearing Bernhardt’s profile. These were presented to special guests at a gala dinner honoring her career. The back of each medallion was engraved by Bernhardt with a personalized inscription and signature. This medal is inscribed to Gustave Geffroy (1855–1926), an influential French journalist, art critic, historian, and novelist.

More Info

Department: 
Modern
Provenance: 
Steppa, Stanford, Source
2011-12-09
Steppa, Elaine, Source
2011-12-09
Color: 
silver
Technique: 
casting
Material: 
silver
Inscription: 
à / G. Geoffroy / toute [illegible] / amitié / Sarah Bernhardt / 9 12 1896
inscription
: 
Engraved on reverse
R. Lalique
signature
: 
Engraved on front

Description

Primary Description: 
Medal Celebrating Sarah Bernhardt. Silver; cast. Circular silver plaque showing portrait of a woman facing right; woman's hair is pulled up.

Exhibitions (1)

Rene Lalique: Enchanted by Glass
Venue(s)
Corning Museum of Glass 2014-05-16 through 2015-01-04
This major exhibition will bring together glass, jewelry, production molds, and design drawings by René Lalique (French, 1860─1945), dating from about 1893 to Lalique’s death in 1945. As a successful jeweler Lalique experimented with glass in his designs, which eventually led to a career in which he fully embraced the material. His aesthetic choices in his designs informed the styles of Art Nouveau and Art Deco in France, and the objects he created have become iconic reflections of these periods. Lalique also embraced industrial innovations, like mass production, allowing luxury glass to be placed in more and more households around the world.

Publications (2)

René Lalique: The Forgotten Years (2016) illustrated, pp. 4 (top right), 5; BIB# 142311
Rene Lalique: Enchanted by Glass (2014) illustrated, p. 51 (fig. 13), 88-89 (no. 1); BIB# 139598