A Russian Empire parcel gilt and ebonised mahogany bureau commode

A rare Russian Empire parcel gilt and ebonised mahogany bureau commode, the main body with five long drawers, each centred by an escutcheon and with cornucopia-shaped handles either side, bordered by ebonised and gilt banded tapering fluted pilasters, the demi-lune fall front above, surmounted by a plateau with a scrolled band at the front, opening to reveal nine drawers, composed of three tiers of drawers with those in the centre of equal size, each drawer with a ring pull. The whole supported on gilt and ebonised ovoid feet.
Russia, date circa 1800-10
Height 150 cm, width: 127 cm, depth 56 cm.
Literature: Arcadi Gaydamak, Russian Empire Furniture, Paris 2000, p. 71, illustrating a free-standing Empire mahogany mirror with gilt and ebonised decoration that was made in St. Petersburg (now in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg), of which the main body is very angular while the shaped top is rounded. And p. 207, illustrating an early nineteenth century Russian Karelian birch and ebonised dressing table (private collection), which again has a restrained angular body but features sinuous lines at the top and on the base.
The most brilliant examples of Russian furniture and architecture were produced during the end of the eighteenth and the first quarter of the nineteenth century. During this period, the most commonly used woods used for furniture veneers were mahogany, poplar and Karelian birch. As here, pieces were almost always adorned with gilt mounts that accentuated their otherwise clean, simple lines and highly polished surfaces.
This gentleman’s bureau commode is certainly one of the most elegant and rare examples of that period. While its restrained and refined lower body compares fairly closely to the majority of Empire pieces made at this time in Russia, the upper, curved section is more unusual. However, one can see a similar combination of angular and curvaceous forms in other early nineteenth century Russian pieces. Among them is a mirror in the Hermitage Museum and a privately owned dressing table, which are both illustrated in Gaydamak’s book on Russian Empire furniture (see above).