Charles Nicolas Odiot
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CHARLES NICOLAS ODIOT,(d. 1869) son of Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot. He was a sucessor to the famous House of Odiot in 1827. He excelled in the rocaille style, and became the purveyor by appointment to His Majesty the King Louis-Philippe and to the Royal Family of Orleans.
He was considered one of the finest silversmiths of his time.
HE WAS LATER SUCCEEDED by his son Gustave who received the most important command ever to be accepted by the House of Odiot: 3000 pieces of solid gold flatware for Saïd Pacha, the Viceroy of Egypt. He later became the purveyor by appointment to the court of His Imperial Majesty the Tsar. Gustave was also the last member of the Odiot family to preside over the company, a reign spanning over two centuries!
TODAY, Nicolas de La Morinière and Guy Bizot preside over the House of Odiot which continues its prestigeous voyage towards the future: continually creating noble pieces of exceptional technical and artistic quality, the company and its craftsmen remain at the summit of their art...
THE PRINCE DEMIDOFF (Demidov) SERVICE
The ODIOT DEMIDOFF Silver Service was designed under the supervision of Charles for Prince Paul Demidoff in 1831and is an excellent example of the Romantic Period;
Anatole N. Demidoff, 1st Prince of San Donato (1813-1870) also placed an order for an enormous silver & silver gilt set in this pattern (more than 550 pc in the flatware set from the Odiot company). All the pieces had the same monogram "A" incorporating an "M" standing for "Anatole and Mathilda," and a Sphinx in remembrance of Napoleons’ triumphs in Egypt in the Empire period. This was probably commissioned for their wedding. The major part of the flatware was made by Odiot and the rest made by a silversmith partner from Odiot and signed by Henin & Viviers. Anatole married Princess Mathilde Bonaparte. Anatole had a life-long interest in all-things Napoleonic. He acquired the former home in exile of Napoleon Bonaparte on the island of Elba from members of the Bonaparte family and erected a Museum dedicated to the Emperor in 1859. This museum stands to this day [Villa Domidoff of San Martino] although most of its contents were sold at auction in 1880. Pieces of the Anatole Demidoff set are in the collection of the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center.
Odiot cutlery is made from an alloy of 925/1000 of pure silver and 75/10000 of copper. After initial stamping and processing and filing, each piece goes to the master silversmith to patiently draw out the fine details of each motif and pattern. Finally, the flatware is hand polished and eventually burnished to give it a fine patina. Today, new individual pieces of flatware from the House of Odiot may cost as much as $1,000 each.