A vase from the Institut Pasteur museum loaned for an exhibition in Conches

The Conches Glass Museum, a local museum that has been awarded the prestigious title "Musée de France", is putting on an exhibition on representations of animals in glassware from the late 19th century to the present day.

The aim of the exhibition is to showcase both the continued presence of this theme in decorative glassware over the period and the wide variety of ways in which animals are represented depending on the era and the source of inspiration.

The exhibition, entitled ANIMAL. A glass bestiary from the late 19th century to the present day, will run from March 9 to September 22, 2019 at the Conches Glass Museum.

For this exhibition, the Pasteur Museum was approached to loan the piece "Vase with chrysanthemums and praying mantis" produced by Émile Gallé in 1878, which belonged to Louis Pasteur.

Pierre Guillaume Camille Forthomme, a physics teacher at the Lycée in Nancy and a friend of the Gallé family, is thought to have given this vase, probably a test piece, to Louis Pasteur, who always showed a great interest in art.