Bureau Mazzarina veneered in violet wood, Turin, early 18th century

This Mazzarina desk was made in the Baroque period, in the early eighteenth century, in Turin, inspired by the models of furniture spread at the court of Louis XIV.
The cabinet is made of wood completely veneered with the precious essence of Violette wood. It has moved pilasters in carved wood that continue vertically in two pairs of four legs with an inverted pyramid trunk. The double cruise that connects the four feet gives a particular balance and harmony to the compositional structure, as well as giving stability. The rectangular top, the front of the drawers and the sides of the cabinet are decorated only through the positioning of the veneer that takes advantage of the coloring and the grain of the wood and creates precious chromatic effects. The desk has, as usual for this type of furniture, the tripartite front, with convex side sections and equipped with three drawers per side. In the centre of Mazarin there is an under-floor drawer and a back door. Original bronze vents finely chiseled and gilded embellish the furniture.
This type of desk, still in great demand for its practicality, is very decorative and refined. It can be placed in different furnishing contexts, combined with antique or modern furniture and also used as a console. It can be used in a study or a room, but also in an entrance hall or a bedroom.
The Louis XIV style furniture is characterized by compact and symmetrical shapes and sumptuous decorations. The Sun King, who also displayed pomp and pomp in the furnishings, wanted it marked by grandeur, demanding formal rigor in execution. The interiors of the royal residence of Versailles conditioned the furnishings of the residences of the ruling houses and of the European noble palaces. This type of furniture, the bureau Mazarin (derived from the surname of Cardinal Julius Mazarin, who succeeded Richelieu at his death in 1642), began to develop already in the period of the Regency of Queen Anne (1643-1661). It is a desk with two sets of drawers on the sides and a central compartment, supported by eight legs united, four to four, by means of X-shaped crossbars.
The furniture has undergone a conservative restoration that has consolidated the veneer without however restoring some wooden shortcomings still present. The intent was to preserve its ancient patina without expropriating the charm of the time spent.