Offered by GSLR Antiques
Empire salon furniture, composed of 4 solid mahogany and mahogany veneer gondola chairs. The front legs in lion's hock surmounted by a bust of winged swan, the front legs in saber. They are covered with a beautiful leopard velvet. Jacob Frères, Consulate period circa 1803-1805, not stamped.
The sculpture of these seats is admirable for its quality and knowledge of the anatomy of felines. If the Directoire and the Consulate period made Etruscan-style seats fashionable, with sheathed feet ending in lion paws, the Jacob Brothers distinguished themselves by the quality of their sculptures, which precisely reproduce the bone structure and musculature and even the "pads" under the feet. The swan busts are also very precise in their beaks and wings. We have in our personal collection a living room furniture of 11 pieces stamped by Jacob Frères with beautiful lion shanks. Upon taking possession of this present set, we realized that the carving is of even higher quality than our own salon. The attribution to Jacob Frères is therefore not in doubt.
For this salon furniture, we looked for an amateur finish that would match their quality and opted for this beautiful leopard print velvet, which evokes antique furniture, both the purist decorations of the Empire such as the Empress' dining room in Compiègne, and the taste of Madeleine Castaing. A good alliance between the sophisticated classic and modernity to match a contemporary interior.
The Jacob brothers are the sons of Georges Jacob, one of the greatest carpenters of the 18th century. The latter, after having trained them, left them his workshop in 1796. Georges son and François-Honoré, who created the company Jacob Frères on rue Meslée, manufacturing furniture and seats in the Directoire and Consulate styles. In view of their success, Georges interrupted his retirement to help his son supply furniture for the imperial residences of Napoleon I. The Jacob dynasty continued its activity under the Empire and the Restoration as suppliers of Imperial and Royal furniture.
When the First Consul moved to the Tuileries in 1800, he called upon the same cabinetmakers to refurnish the former royal residences devastated by the Revolution. After having produced until then works of a very sober taste, which were worth especially by the character and the purity of the style, the Jacobs began to manufacture pieces more richly decorated with sculptures and bronzes, of which our seats are a good example.
NB: from the same set, we also have a pair of gondola chairs, currently in the final stages of restoration and soon to come.
Beautiful amateur set, the gondola seats are very comfortable.
Our seats have been completely restored to new, disassembled, reassembled, varnished with a buffer, the upholstery redone in the old way on straps, covered with a new leopard velvet (Osborne & Little).
Width 58cm
Depth 50cm
Seat height 42cm
Back height 83cm
