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167
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Pair of low bookcases in blackened wood, known as the Hercul…
See original version (French)
167
-
Pair of low bookcases in blackened wood, known as the Hercul…
See original version (French)
Estimate €30,000 - €50,000
Voluntary lot
Description
Pair of low bookcases in blackened wood, known as the Hercules child with soap bubbles, decorated in part and in counterpart with marquetry of brass rods and foliage. The tripartite front opens with three leaves, two of which are glazed on the sides. Recessed plinth base and flattened ball feet. Rich ormolu ornamentation including figures of putti with music trophies, young hercules playing in floral drapery, masks of bearded men, foliate spandrels, escutcheons, rosettes, stylised consoles, ribbons and friezes of ovals or hearts.
Napoleon III period, in the style of André-Charles Boulle.
Attributed to Mathieu Béfort, known as BÉFORT JEUNE
H. 145.5 cm - W. 212.5 cm - D. 146 cm
(Good general condition, wear, old restorations, small parts to be refixed)
Our pair of bookcases attributed to Béfort is directly inspired by those in the former collection of Barthélémy-Augustin Blondel d'Azaincourt (1719-1794) sold on 10 February 1783 under lot number 414. One of the two is shown in figure 60 on page 103 of Alexandre Pradère's 1989 book Les ébénistes français (Fig. 1).
A pair of low bookcases with a child Hercules blowing soap bubbles, seized in 1793 from the Duc de Brissac, are currently on display at the Musée National du Château de Versailles (deposited by the Louvre on 21 July 1946 (inv. OA 5511 and 5512). (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3)
The same model of low bookcase with Hercules attributed to André-Charles Boulle around 1700-1710, from a private collection, was published in the article on Boulle furniture in Connaissance des arts of June 2024, n°837.
For other models of Louis XIV period low bookcases by André-Charles Boulle, see those in the Louvre under inventory numbers OA 5466, OA 5462, OA 5460 and OA 5461.
Born in Paris in 1813 to a highly reputed family of cabinetmakers, Mathieu Béfort worked in Paris from the late 1830s to the early 1880s, producing exceptional furniture that was strongly inspired by the work of André-Charles Boulle, whose influence was still very much felt in the mid-19th century. He won a medal at the Exposition de l'Industrie Française in 1844 and became a supplier to Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie.
See original version (French)
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Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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