Lot Essay
THIS CABINET IS CONCEIVED IN THE FULL-BLOWN VERSION OF THE DUCTH LOUIS XVI STYLE AND WAS PROBABLY EXECUTED BETWEEN 1780 AND 1790, AT THE END OF THE REIGN OF STADHOLDER PRINCE WILLIAM V. WITH ITS BROKEN TRIANGULAR PEDIMENT TRIANGULAR PEDIMENT, THIS CABINET RELATES TO A CORNER-CABINET WITH A SIMILAR CRESTING, MADE BY THE HAARLEM CABINET-MAKER JOHAN GOTTFRIED FREMMING (1753-1832) FOR ONE OF THE REGENTS' CHAMBERS OF TEYLERS HOFJE, WHICH WAS DESIGNED BY THE AMSTERDAM ARCHITECT LEENDERT VIERVANT (1752-1801) AND WAS BUILT BETWEEN 1785 AND 1788. FREMMING'S CORNER CABINET, WHICH HE SUPPLIED ON 2 JANUARY 1790, IS LISTED AS: 'EEN HOEK BUVET VAN GEBLOEMT MAHONIHOUT MET EEN OPEN VRONTE SPIES', FOR WHICH HE WAS PAID 86 FLORINS. (J.R. TER MOLEN, 'DE REGENTENVERTREKKEN VAN TEYLERS HOFJE TE HAARLEM', ANTIEK 15 (1980-'81), PP. 314, 320-321, 339)
FREMMING SPECIFICALLY MENTIONS THE 'OPEN VRONTE SPIES' OF THE CORNER CABINET. THIS TYPE OF CRESTING WAS PROBABLY ONLY EXECUTED BY DUTCH CABINET-MAKERS BETWEEN CIRCA 1780 AND 1800, WHEREAS IN BRITAIN THE BROKEN TRIANGULAR PEDIMENT WAS EMPLOYED THROUGHOUT THE 18TH CENTURY. AN EARLY EXAMPLE IS A SCARLET AND GOLD-JAPANNED CABINET, EXECUTED AROUND 1735, AND STAMPED BY JOHN BELCHIER, WHICH IS ALREADY SURMOUNTED BY THIS KIND OF TOP. (C.GILBERT, MARKED LONDON FURNITURE, LEEDS, 1996, P. 86 AND PLATE 68). IN THE FOLLOWING YEARS, NUMEROUS DESIGNS WERE PUBLISHED FOR BOOKCASES WITH THIS KIND OF CRESTING, SUCH AS THE 'TUSCAN BOOKCASE' IN BATTY LANGLEY'S CITY AND COUNTRY BUILDER'S AND WORKMAN'S TREASURY OF DESIGNS OF 1740. IN THOMAS CHIPPENDALE'S 1ST EDITION OF HIS DIRECTOR OF 1754, THERE ARE FOUR DESIGNS FOR RELATED BOOKCASES WITH THIS TYPE OF CRESTING, ILLUSTRATED ON LXIX, LXI, LXII AND LXIII (E. WHITE, PICTORIAL DICTIONARY OF BRITISH FURNITURE DESIGNS IN THE 18TH CENTURY, WOODBRIDGE, 1990, P. 233 AND P. 235).
WHETHER OR NOT DUTCH CABINET-MAKERS FREQUENTLY MADE USE OF FOREIGN FURNITURE DESIGNS IS STILLE UNCLEAR. ENGLISH DESIGNS WERE ALMOST CERTAINLY IMPORTED TO HOLLAND, PROBABLY MAINLY TOWARDS THE END OF THE 18TH CENTURY, WHEN DUTCH FURNITURE-MAKERS GRADUALLY ABSORBED MORE INFLUENCES FROM ENGLAND THAN FROM FRANCE. HEPPLEWHITE'S THE CABINET-MAKER AND UPHOLSTERER'S GUIDE (1788) AND SHERATON'S THE CABINET-MAKER AND UPHOSTERER'S DRAWING-BOOK (1794) UNDOUBTABLY BECAME AN IMPORTANT SOURCE OF INSPIRATION FOR FURNITURE-MAKERS IN HOLLAND AND WERE EVEN COPIED IN DUTCH PRINTS, SUCH AS IN THE KABINET VAN MODE EN SMAAK, PUBLISHED IN HAARLEM BETWEEN 1791 AND 1794, WHICH INCLUDED ENGRAVINGS OF ITEMS OF FURNITURE WHICH WERE CLEARLY COPIED FROM ENGLISH PROTOTYPES. (R.J. BAARSEN, MEUBELEN EN ZILVER OP DE TENTOONSTELLING 'EDELE EENVOUD, NEO-CLASSICISME IN NEDERLAND 1765-1800' FRANS HALSMUSEUM, HAARLEM 1989, P. 118)
FREMMING SPECIFICALLY MENTIONS THE 'OPEN VRONTE SPIES' OF THE CORNER CABINET. THIS TYPE OF CRESTING WAS PROBABLY ONLY EXECUTED BY DUTCH CABINET-MAKERS BETWEEN CIRCA 1780 AND 1800, WHEREAS IN BRITAIN THE BROKEN TRIANGULAR PEDIMENT WAS EMPLOYED THROUGHOUT THE 18TH CENTURY. AN EARLY EXAMPLE IS A SCARLET AND GOLD-JAPANNED CABINET, EXECUTED AROUND 1735, AND STAMPED BY JOHN BELCHIER, WHICH IS ALREADY SURMOUNTED BY THIS KIND OF TOP. (C.GILBERT, MARKED LONDON FURNITURE, LEEDS, 1996, P. 86 AND PLATE 68). IN THE FOLLOWING YEARS, NUMEROUS DESIGNS WERE PUBLISHED FOR BOOKCASES WITH THIS KIND OF CRESTING, SUCH AS THE 'TUSCAN BOOKCASE' IN BATTY LANGLEY'S CITY AND COUNTRY BUILDER'S AND WORKMAN'S TREASURY OF DESIGNS OF 1740. IN THOMAS CHIPPENDALE'S 1ST EDITION OF HIS DIRECTOR OF 1754, THERE ARE FOUR DESIGNS FOR RELATED BOOKCASES WITH THIS TYPE OF CRESTING, ILLUSTRATED ON LXIX, LXI, LXII AND LXIII (E. WHITE, PICTORIAL DICTIONARY OF BRITISH FURNITURE DESIGNS IN THE 18TH CENTURY, WOODBRIDGE, 1990, P. 233 AND P. 235).
WHETHER OR NOT DUTCH CABINET-MAKERS FREQUENTLY MADE USE OF FOREIGN FURNITURE DESIGNS IS STILLE UNCLEAR. ENGLISH DESIGNS WERE ALMOST CERTAINLY IMPORTED TO HOLLAND, PROBABLY MAINLY TOWARDS THE END OF THE 18TH CENTURY, WHEN DUTCH FURNITURE-MAKERS GRADUALLY ABSORBED MORE INFLUENCES FROM ENGLAND THAN FROM FRANCE. HEPPLEWHITE'S THE CABINET-MAKER AND UPHOLSTERER'S GUIDE (1788) AND SHERATON'S THE CABINET-MAKER AND UPHOSTERER'S DRAWING-BOOK (1794) UNDOUBTABLY BECAME AN IMPORTANT SOURCE OF INSPIRATION FOR FURNITURE-MAKERS IN HOLLAND AND WERE EVEN COPIED IN DUTCH PRINTS, SUCH AS IN THE KABINET VAN MODE EN SMAAK, PUBLISHED IN HAARLEM BETWEEN 1791 AND 1794, WHICH INCLUDED ENGRAVINGS OF ITEMS OF FURNITURE WHICH WERE CLEARLY COPIED FROM ENGLISH PROTOTYPES. (R.J. BAARSEN, MEUBELEN EN ZILVER OP DE TENTOONSTELLING 'EDELE EENVOUD, NEO-CLASSICISME IN NEDERLAND 1765-1800' FRANS HALSMUSEUM, HAARLEM 1989, P. 118)