A ROCK CRYSTAL AND GOLD MOUNTED TAZZA FROM THE ROTHSCHILD / BARON DE REDE COLLECTION PROBABLY 18TH CENTURY the bowl carved into a trefoil shape and centred by a gold foliate roundel, on a globular stem (stem possibly glass) over a circular foot, with gold rope twist mount to the stem and foot,  12cm high x 12.5cm diameter The bowl and foot tested as rock crystal under a polariscope, stem not possible to test.  Provenance: Previously sold at lot 135, Meubles et Objets d'Art provenant de l'Hotel Lambert et du Chateau de Ferrieres, appartenant au Baron de Rede et au Baron Guy de Rothschild, Sotheby's Parke Bernet, Monaco, May 25 and 26, 1975, reproduced on page 109 of the catalogue.  Baron Guy de Rothschild (1909-2007) and Alexis, Baron de Redé (1922-2004) were great friends and both famous for their exquisite art collections and opulent parties. Guy de Rothschild was a French banker and member of the famous Rothschild family. He inherited the Chateau de Ferrieres, a beautiful country estate twenty five miles east of Paris, which had been designed by the architect Joseph Paxton and built between 1855 and 1859 for his ancestor Baron James de Rothschild. Baron James selected Paxton to design the chateau as he had designed the huge mansion Mentmore Towers for his cousin, Mayer Amschel de Rothschild, and the Baron apparently insisted that Paxton "Build me a Mentmore, but twice the size". The Chateau de Ferrieres is still considered to be one of, if not the most luxurious chateau in France. The opening party in 1862 was attended by Napoleon III, and upon visiting, Wilhelm I, the Emperor of Germany exclaimed "No Kings could afford this! It could only belong to a Rothschild!" Sadly, during the occupation of France in World War II the German seized the chateau and looted the vast art collection, and the building remained empty until Guy de Rothschild and his wife Baroness Marie-Hélène (1927-1996) restored it to its former glory. The couple turned the chateau into a place where European nobility mingled with musicians, artists, fashion designers and Hollywood movie stars at grand soirées. Much talked about for the lavish and creative theme balls and charity fundraisers she organized both in Paris and New York, Marie-Hélène hosted regular parties at the château, mainly inviting aristocracy, but which also included her friends from a wider society such as Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn. One such close friend was Alexis von Rosenberg, Baron de Rede. He shared the couples' love of high society balls, horse racing, art collecting and interior design and like the Rothschilds, came from a banking family. Baron de Rede's residence was the Hotel Lambert, Paris, which he purchased in 1949 and restored. Here he held lavish parties, dinners and balls which were as famous for their decor and food as for the people who attended. Some commented that he had created his only small 18th century court there.