H: 1.60 m W: 2.05 m
Chandelier with two large arched branches ending in gilded griffin heads supported by a patinated bronze stem decorated with bronze rings. The griffins hold in their beaks a ring which supports a frame bearing in its lower part a paraffin lamp decorated on its tank with a double Greek.
The history of billiards is ancient, but it was in the 17th century that it developed; the Cardinal of Richelieu liked to play billiards, as did Louis XIV, who can be seen in certain prints playing with his brother and the Count of Toulouse. Throughout the 18th century, the same thing happened at court: Versailles and Fontainebleau had a billiard room, and by the end of the century there were eight hundred billiard rooms in Paris. The Empire was not to be outdone, Napoleon played billiards and the tradition continued throughout the 19th century.
