GERMAIN, François-Thomas
French silversmith, part of a family of silversmiths, son of Thomas Germain (1674-1748). On the death of his father, he was allowed to take over his father’s lodgings in the Louvre, Paris, and was appointed Sculpteur-Orfèvre du Roi. He completed items commissioned from Thomas Germain (e.g. lamp, 1744-54, for Ste Geneviève, Paris) and also modified earlier pieces by his father, for example a pair of tureens and stands (1726-28; Malibu, CA, Getty Museum), which have an inscription on the stands added by François-Thomas in 1764. He also continued to use his father’s casting models.
In 1765 Germain broke guild regulations by working with financiers to receive some debts owed to him, as he was only allowed to enter into partnerships with his fellow smiths. For this he was forced to resign his position and declare bankruptcy. He died out of the public eye in 1791, the last member of his distinguished family to serve as a royal smith.
