Offered by Franck Baptiste Paris
Luxurious chest of drawers curved on all sides in kingwood veneer applied in curling and butterfly wings.
The front offers an opulent crossbow curve and presents four drawers in three rows, which are separated by dark intermediate crosspieces of brass grooves.
The uprights with powerful "S" crosses are connected by a delicately scalloped low crosspiece.
The sides with flared curves are decorated with rectangular reserves centered with diamonds.
The set is enriched with a precious trim of gilded bronzes including important drops decorated with shells and acanthus on a trellis background, angle irons decorated with intertwined gadroons, clogs in the shape of rocks from or springing acanthus leaves, grip buttons with rosettes, keyholes in the form of bat wings and a lamp base with acanthus shell and foliage.
The bronzes are original, in their old mercury gilding of the time.
Thick original top in Belgian royal red marble which perfectly matches the contours of the chest of drawers.
Fir bottom and interior of the drawers in walnut.
Very good state of preservation.
Front pillar stamped with François Lieutaud's "FL" monogram.*
Parisian work from the Regency period around 1720.
Dimensions:
Width: 130cm; Depth: 64 cm Height: 84 cm
Provenance: private collection Paris
Our opinion :
The chest of drawers that we present is not a standard model but a piece of the greatest rarity, made to measure by the cabinetmaker to the king François Lieutaud.
The opulent forms, the quality and the thickness of a very light veneer, in "island wood" used in end grain and grain wood and the rich ornamentation of finely chiseled bronzes, which he melted himself, thanks to to a privilege granted by King Louis XIV in person, leave no doubt about the prestige of the sponsor of our piece of furniture.
We can also compare our chest of drawers to the one delivered by Lieutaud for the Marquise de Pompadour at the Château de Bellevue. (Christies Paris sale June 25, 2008 lot 202: 74,000 euros)
The superiority in every respect of our copy over this royal piece of furniture, allows us to place our chest of drawers among the prestigious models made to order by the cabinetmaker of the Sun King.
Finally, it is important to specify that our chest of drawers is presented in a "corner flower" condition, as we have rarely seen on this type of regency chest of drawers with a resinous frame.
This is due to an extremely refined "front" assembly, with intermediate floors fitted to the sides by dovetails which solidify the whole, a rear bottom recessed in the grooves of the uprights and top and bottom floors which come to block everything, like a box.
*The mark "F.L." corresponds to the stamp of François Lieutaud (1665-1748), cabinetmaker received Master at the end of the 17th century.
Originally from Marseille, he was the father of Charles LIEUTAUD, himself a cabinetmaker and the grandfather of Balthazar LIEUTAUD, also a cabinetmaker. Installed in Paris, rue Traversière then rue Saint Nicolas, he executed with the famous Charles BOULLE, some of the most beautiful furniture of Versailles. The acts of a trial of the time indicate that, exceptionally, King Louis XIV had granted him the rare privilege of being able to create and manufacture the bronzes of his furniture, because at that time, only the corporation of bronziers had this exclusivity.
