THIS IS AN ANTIQUE NEOCLASSICAL FIREPLACE MANTEL OF A VERY FINE ITALIAN SCULPTURE, PARISIAN PROVENANCE, PERFECT PRESERVATION AND PERFECT PATINA, NAPOLEON III PERIOD , GOOD FAMILY CARRARA WHITE MARBLE (TODAY CALLED "GIOIA" AFTER THE NAME OF THE ONLY QUARRY LEFT, ONCE, AMONG OLD INSIDERS LIKE ME, IT WAS CALLED "BIANCO P", WHERE THE LETTER "P" MEANT "PURE")
ALMOST ALWAYS, WHEN WE SPEAK OF "LOUIS XVI NAPOLEON III PERIOD" FIREPLACES, WE REFER TO MANTELS IN ALMOST PERFECT LOUIS XVI STYLE (I.E., IN A STYLE IN FORCE ABOUT A CENTURY EARLIER..), BUT, PRECISELY, BUILT IN THE NAPOLEON III PERIOD (AN ERA THAT WE GENERALLY MAKE GO FROM 1850 UNTIL THE EARLY TWENTIES OF ART NOUVEAU, 1880-90).
ONE THEREFORE MAKES AN IMPROPER CLAIM.
THE ONLY (AND I STRESS THE WORD “ONLY”) MODEL THAT CAN BEAR THE TITLE “PERIOD AND NAPOLEON III STYLE” IS PRECISELY THE DEMI-LUNE FIREPLACE.
IN FACT THIS MODEL DID NOT EXIST BEFORE 1850 AND THEREFORE IT IS NOT POSSIBLE FOR ANYONE TO CLAIM THAT IT IS A REPLICA OF A LUIGI XVI FIREPLACE.
AT MOST IT CAN BE SAID THAT THE DEMI-LUNE MODEL WAS BORN, AS EVA FROM THAT OF ADAM, FROM THE RIB OF THE STYLE LUIGI XVI OF WHICH IT IS, IN MY OPINION, A DECIDEDLY IMPROVED VARIANT.
WELL, GIVEN TO CAESAR WHAT IS CAESAR'S, LET'S SEE WHAT OTHER FEATURES THIS BLESSED AND CHARMING DEMI-LUNE HAS TO MAKE ITSELF SO WELL-LIKED, BESIDES BY ME, BY ALL THE WOMEN AND ARCHITECTS OF THE GLOBE:
1) THE ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENT THAT MOST DISTINGUISHES IT CONSISTS OF ITS QUARTER-COLUMN ARCHED LEGS... THEY ARE NOT ONLY A FANCY DECORATIVE ELEMENT, BUT ALSO HAVE THE AESTHETIC FUNCTION OF ENSURING THAT THIS FIREPLACE CAN ALSO BEGIN TO BE SEEN (AND ENJOYED..) BY LOOKING AT IT FROM THE SIDE..
2) DOES THIS SEEM LIKE A SMALL THING TO YOU? I FIND IT AN IMPORTANT THING BECAUSE THE FIREPLACE IS NOT ONLY SEEN FROM THE FRONT, BUT HAS AS MANY AS THREE FACES, AND ALL OF THEM NEED TO BE RIGHTLY CARED FOR...
3) IT'S A “BISEXUAL” FIREPLACE... AND HERE I HAVE TO EXPLAIN HOW FIREPLACES ARE DIVIDED INTO MALE AND FEMALE:
FEMALES ARE THE FIREPLACES WITH WAVY SHAPES, BAROQUE, OR ROCOCO' (LOUIS XV, LOUIS XIV, REGENCY, ART NOUVEAU ETC..) WHILE MALES ARE THE NEOCLASSICAL SPECIMENS, OF LINEAR ARCHITECTURE IN GENERAL (SUCH AS THE LOUIS XVI, DIRECTOIRE, EMPIRE, DECO' ETC..).
NOW, THIS DEMI-LUNE, WHERE SHALL WE PUT IT?
AMONG THE FEMALES!
IMPOSSIBLE, IT'S ALL PERFECT GEOMETRY, OF 90-DEGREE ANGLES OR HALF-MOONS EVERYWHERE, FROM THE (BEAUTIFUL..) PLATFORM TO ITS PERFECTLY SQUARE MOUTH..
NO, YOU CERTAINLY CAN'T SAY IT'S 100 % FEMALE....
THEN DO WE PUT HIM AMONG THE BOYS?
BUT NO... DON'T YOU SEE HOW GRACEFUL HIS LEG IS?
AND THE FLOORBOARD, WITH THOSE QUARTER ROUNDS....
AND THEN HER NAME... “DEMI-LUNE”... HALF-MOON, A TRUE ROMANCE, WHAT IS IT EVER ABOUT MALE?!
IN SHORT, THIS FANTASTIC MODEL CARRIES IN ITS DNA BOTH MASCULINE AND FEMININE ELEMENTS TOGETHER IN AN EXTRAORDINARILY SUCCESSFUL MELANGE THAT CAN ONLY BE CLASSIFIED IN THE NARROW AND REFINED CATEGORY OF... “BISEX.”
BY THE WAY, THIS HAPPY AMBIGUITY OF HIS HAS AN IMPORTANT IMPLICATION: THIS FIREPLACE MANTEL APPEALS AS MUCH TO MALE CUSTOMERS AS IT DOES TO FEMALE CUSTOMERS....
OH, GOSH, IT'S NOT THAT IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT HUSBANDS LIKE A FIREPLACE-THEIRWIVES CERTAINLY DON'T PAY ATTENTION TO THEIR OPINION WHEN IT COMES TO MAKING DECISIONS, THOUGH... THOUGH, AT LEAST IN THE CASE OF THE DEMI-LUNE, YOUR WIFE WILL PRETEND TO PLEASE YOU TOO AND ALLOW YOU TO HAVE YOUR SAY, SO MUCH “YOURS” THIS TIME IS ALSO “HERS” !!!
LAST NOTE: THIS FIREPLACE, DESPITE BEING SECOND HALF OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY (AND THEREFORE BUILT IN THE MOST NUMERICALLY FRUITFUL PERIOD.) IS DEFINITELY RARE TO FIND.
WHOEVER BUYS A DEMI-LUNE, THEREFORE, HAS VERY LITTLE CHANCE OF BEING TOLD ...” I HAVE ONE LIKE THAT IN MY HOUSE TOO ...”
AND YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO TELL ME ...
“BUT, MAURIZIO, HOW CAN YOU SAY IT IS SO RARE IF THERE ARE ONLY AT LEAST TWO OR THREE OTHER SPECIMENS IN YOUR SITE?!”
BECAUSE“ -I WOULD ANSWER YOU-”DEAR MY MISCHIEVOUS/SUSPICIOUS CUSTOMER” (EH, YES, ONLY A WOMAN COULD ASK SUCH NAUGHTY QUESTIONS..) ”I SEARCH FAR AND WIDE FOR DEMI-LUNE FIREPLACES BECAUSE I AM IN LOVE WITH THEM. AND IT IS FOR THIS REASON, AND THIS REASON ALONE, THAT I HAVE MORE THAN ONE.. GO LOOK FOR THEM AT MY COMPETITORS ALL OVER THE ITALIAN BOOT, AND YOU WON'T FIND A SINGLE ONE!!!” HAPPY?!”
