Brass and Brushed Steel Fireplace Companion Set with Claw Feet, Attributed to Maison Jansen. France. Circa 1940.

This exceptional fireplace companion set, attributed to Maison Jansen, exemplifies the confident material vocabulary for which the house was celebrated: the bold pairing of dark brushed steel with polished brass, a combination drawn from the French Empire period and refined by Jansen into one of the defining signatures of twentieth century French decorative metalwork. The long slender tool shafts in dark brushed steel contrast strikingly with the polished brass finials, collar details and base elements, creating a composition of considerable visual authority.

The stand features a circular base fitted with claw feet — a neoclassical motif that recurs throughout the Jansen vocabulary — from which rises a central shaft supporting the tools. The finials at the crown of each tool handle are in polished brass, their form drawn from the classical French repertoire. The set includes a poker, shovel, brush and tongs, all sharing the same refined material contrast and consistent formal language.

Maison Jansen, founded in Paris in 1880, was among the most prestigious interior design firms of the twentieth century, with a client list that included royal households, heads of state and the greatest collectors of the era. Their fireplace accessory production was characterised by exceptional craftsmanship and a precise historical sensibility. The present set, attributed to the house and dating to circa 1940, reflects these qualities at a high level.