Paperweight c. 1845 - 1860

This glass paperweight features a flower, meticulously crafted by Baccarat Glassworks. Encased within clear glass, the flower is a microcosm of nature, a symbol laden with meaning. Since antiquity, the flower has served as a potent symbol of life, death, and rebirth. Think of the floriated scepters of the Minoan priestesses, their hands outstretched to the heavens. The symbolism has echoes across time, from Botticelli's "Primavera," a celebration of life, to Ophelia's drowning in a river surrounded by flowers, signifying both beauty and tragedy. Here, the flower is suspended, an emblem of transient beauty captured and preserved. This act of preservation speaks to our collective desire to hold onto fleeting moments, to defy the inevitable decay that time brings. Like a pressed flower in a book, it is a memento, charged with emotion. The paperweight becomes an object that engages us on a deeply subconscious level, stirring memories and emotions tied to nature's enduring cycles.