Rare pair of cast iron andiron of Gothic period with men wild decoration

Origin : France, Auvergne
Period : 15th century


Height : 78 cm
Width : 49 cm
Depth : 67 cm

Cast Iron


Pair of andirons with a wild male holding a club. A crown placed on her thighs wearing a badge in the center, surrounded by six shells St. Jacques , probably the family arms of the Bois des Arpentis (Touraine). Its heraldic use recurring in France and Germany mainly , seems to emphasize the age of the family.

The wild man is a figure that appears in literature and the works of art of medieval Europe. "Pilosus" is often armed with a club and is a link between civilized humanity and elven spirits of the wilderness.

The first designs of the medieval wild man present him as a normal human made wild by madness . They appear in Celtic tales of the Middle Ages with poetic and prophetic powers.