Cutlery and shapes

From the dishes with the carved edges to the complex realizations of the tableware, the pieces of form are intended to present and serve the dishes. Since the 17th century, the French are fond of tableware. There are many receptacles such as the olive pots, which were widely distributed during the reigns of Louis XIV and Louis XV, or the terrines. These shaped pieces may be made of terracotta or silver, carved or not. The most used materials for the pieces of form are: terracotta, porcelain and faience through manufactures like Samson, silver and silver plated by goldsmiths like Hermes and Odiot, gold and vermeil. But also plastic, glass and crystal like that of Baccarat. Tastes adapt to the times. Thus great designers inspire over time decorations like Jean Cotelle and Jean Bérain for the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. A typical example of a piece of shape subsisting without difficulty is the champagne bucket, regularly offered to Paul Bert Serpette.