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54
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Important French secretaire à abattant with clock, Louis XV …
See original version (Italian)
54
-
Important French secretaire à abattant with clock, Louis XV …
See original version (Italian)
Estimate €20,000 - €40,000
Voluntary lot
Description
Important French secretaire à abattant with clock, Louis XV period, circa 1750–1765 194 x 76 x 42 cm
In rosewood, amaranth and violetwood, with marquetry and finely chiselled gilded bronze fittings. Panelled and inlaid with precious woods on an oak frame; finely chiselled gilded bronze; clockwork mechanism with verge escapement and conoid winding.This imposing secrétaire is distinguished by the particular complexity of its structure and its extremely rich ornamentation, in which cabinetmaking, marquetry, gilded bronze and clockwork mechanics combine to create a piece of furniture conceived as a true object of prestige.The front, rising vertically in a strongly architectural arrangement, is entirely clad in a refined veneer of rosewood, amaranth and violetwood, arranged in geometric patterns and ‘ailes de papillon’ motifs. The surfaces are punctuated by shaped inlays highlighted by fillets and broad borders in dark wood, whose sinuous lines follow the undulating profile of the piece. The panels also feature minute floral and plant motifs, incorporated with particular finesse within the geometric composition.The lower section is enclosed by two large, contoured doors, adorned with large marquetry panels and gilded bronze fittings along the central line, the vents and the lower corners. The doors conceal a series of five small internal drawers.Above this is a drop-down panel, the interior of which features a complex arrangement of compartments and small drawers, with two lower pull-out drawers and a leather-covered top. The design of this space, conceived as a veritable miniature internal architecture, testifies to the functional yet extremely refined character of the piece.The upper section is organised into several tiers. Two rectangular drawers precede a pair of small, contoured doors, operated by a snap-open mechanism and containing further compartments and small drawers. The interior of the doors features elaborate geometric marquetry in chevron and radial patterns, executed with particular care even in the parts normally hidden from view: a detail that attests to the quality of the piece’s craftsmanship.Particularly spectacular is the curved cornice, which is also entirely veneered and decorated with minute floral motifs, culminating in a lavish array of gilded bronze fittings. At the centre, within an elaborate rocaille composition of volutes, plant motifs and latticework, is a rare clock with a horizontal rotating dial, whose mechanism features a verge escapement and a conoid winding mechanism, circa 1760.The bronze finial at the top is one of the most distinctive features of the piece. A rocaille-style composition, formed of broad vegetal volutes, ribbon-like elements and zoomorphic motifs, frames the clock mechanism; above it stands an oval cartouche adorned with a prominent fleur-de-lys. The fleur-de-lys, a motif traditionally associated with the heraldry of the French monarchy but also widely used in eighteenth-century decorative art, helps to emphasise the piece’s distinctly French and representative character.The finely chiselled and gilded bronze fittings also feature on the shoulders, at the corners, on the locks and at the ends of the legs, with large scrolls of acanthus leaves accompanying and emphasising the sinuous profile of the case. Their quality and abundance suggest that the piece was commissioned for a client of particular prestige. Given its overall design, the use of exotic woods, the abundance of rocaille bronze fittings and its rounded structure, the secrétaire is firmly situated within the context of French cabinetmaking during the reign of Louis XV, at a time around the middle of the century when furniture of great technical complexity could incorporate mechanical devices and clocks into its cabinet-making structure. The incorporation of clockwork into the architecture of the piece is reflected in the finest Parisian production of the period, in which cabinetmakers and marchands-merciers frequently collaborated with bronze casters and clockmakers. The use of rosewood and amaranth, and the almost sculptural role of the bronze fittings, are characteristic features of high-quality French production of the period. Of particular interest, too, is the presence, inside one of the small drawers of the drop-front, of an antique paper label bearing the inscription: “From the Duke of Westminster collection”. The Dukes of Westminster and the Grosvenor family, in fact, built up one of the most important British collections of French decorative arts and furniture during the 19th century, with collections housed at Grosvenor House, London, and at Eaton Hall, Cheshire. It is worth noting the family’s particular interest in large-scale 18th-century French furniture. The piece also bears a cursive stamp on the reverse, which has not yet been deciphered; this feature warrants further investigation to ascertain whether it relates to a cabinetmaker, a restorer, a marchand or a collection inventory.
See original version (Italian)
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Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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