Rene Lalique 1928: 6" Tall Bottle for Jay Thorpe's "French Lilac" EDP. Rare.

Description

Rene Lalique designed the bottle of "French Lilac" in 1928 for Jay Thorpe, an American fashion designer with a store on 57th Street in New York between 1920 and 1962. Thorpe was not a regular client of Lalique who only created 4 bottles for him, all in 1927 and 1928. This is the last one Lalique made for him, and the tallest, 6". "French Lilac" only existed in Eau de Parfum, not in pure perfume, hence the size of the bottle (there is only one size).
There are many common points with Lalique's first bottle, in 1927, for JAYTHO (as the designer was known),"Méchant mais Charmant" (Mean but so Charming). In particular a theme of tulips and a tulip-shaped stopper. Why a perfume called Lilac would have a bottle with tulips on it escapes me but these were Thorpe's wishes. This bottle is however much taller than the one for "Méchant...".
Thorpe also wanted his name to figure prominently on the bottle, and his name alone, not Lalique's. The name JAYTHO  is thus written vertically in rather big letters (photo 3) and the bottle is intentionally unsigned, a fact mentioned in the caption of the bottle's photo in Marcilhac big book (the unofficial Lalique "Bible") on page 938 (photo 11). It is therefore only marked under the base "Bottle Made in France" (photo 10).
The interaction between Lalique and Thorpe was notoriously bad, hence their short-lived collaboration:
Thorpe wanted Lalique to design the bottles but not to manufacture them, in order to lower their cost. The bottles were therefore made by a cheaper glassmaker (after the Lalique design), something that Lalique did not like.
"French Lilac" is
repertoried and photographed in the large book by Felix Marcilhac already mentioned, on page 938 of the 2011 French printing, under reference "JAYTHO 4" (photo 11). The condition is good and the bottle is completely sound to contain your favorite EDT or EDP: Please note that the large line on the neck (photo 8) is from origin. It is not a crack and it cannot be felt under one's nail, either inside or outside which are completely flush. However, there are a couple of hairline scratches on the neck (photo 9). It is otherwise very good.
This is an interesting bottle, not often seen and quite rare. It is, in over 20 years, the first time that I come across it.
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