PARIS.- Sothebys announced the sale on 18 April 2012 in Paris one of the worlds most important collections of 17th & 18th Century French Silver assembled for over half-a-century by Raymond Jourdan-Barry and his son Pierre. The superbly coherent 200-lot ensemble embodies rarity and supreme elegance. This is a collection of the highest quality a pinnacle in the quest for ideal beauty. Each item of silverware is imbued with the spirit of the ensemble as a whole, embodying refined taste, virtuoso technique, perfect proportions and stylistic unity. And each item has its own look making it possible to speak of a Jourdan-Barry piece. Pierre Jourdan-Barry is both a collector and a patron of the arts. He comes from a family of collectors who formed his artistic taste. He has invested in painting, ceramics (donating his faïence collection to the Musée Pastré in his native Marseil