Earthenware and terracotta mantel dating from 1910 made by Hippolyte Boulenger Company.
Hippolyte Boulenger compagny has realized many parisians building’s entrances and bought up Creil & Monterau’s earthenware factory in 1920.
This merger has risen the firm to a national fame with the most prestigious orders as wall-coverings in the Paris metro.
Underneath the mantel, a terracotta setting represents a salamander. A legendary amphibian whose stories are related to fire. It likely originates from the tendancy of many salamanders to dwell inside rotting logs. When placed into a fire, the salamander would attempt to escape from the log, lending to the belief that salamanders were created from flames – a belief that gave the creature its name.
Available at Andrée Macé Gallery in Paris.
The salamender:
