A Czarina’s Parting Gift

Among the gems of that peaceful riverside village in the heart of Paris that is the Île Saint-Louis, one cannot miss two hôtels particuliers, the Lambert and the Lauzun: two splendid enclaves where for the past four centuries people and objects with interesting stories have washed up and floated away, giving rise to temporary constellations in the ebb and flow of high society, fabulous wealth, and both taste and style. In October 2022, a vast quantity of the Hôtel Lambert’s furnishings was scattered to collectors worldwide in an unforgettable four-day auction held by Sotheby’s: among other objects was the soup tureen shown below. It was part of a table service that Catherine of Russia gifted, as a sort of pink slip, to her lover Count Grigory Orlov. Of the 3,000 items auctioned, the tureen alone brought in 1,184,500 euros.