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Lot Essay
André-Charles Boulle, appointed Ebéniste, Ciseleur, Doreur et
Sculpteur du Roi in 1672.
Two very similar tables are described in the posthumous inventory of Louis XIV's furniture compiled in 1718 under no. 770: deux belles tables en marqueterie de cuivre et d'étain, sur fond d'écaille de tortue, aiant sur le bord un carderon de bronze doré en feuilles de chêne et un tiroir au milieu, portées sur quatre consoles de même marqueterie représentant quatre thermes de femmes de bronze doré, longues chacune de trois pieds deux pouces et vingt deux pouces de large; avec chacune un gradin de même marqueterie à cinq tiroirs dont quatre fermant à clef et un qui se tire par un bouton.
The tables had already left the Royal Garde-meuble by 1775 and were probably sold around 1750.
An identical table in contre-partie marquetry but now missing its marquetry top is in the collection of H. M. The Queen (see H. Clifford Smith, Buckingham Palace, London, 1931, fig. 256). This and the table in this lot must originally have been conceived as a pair.
The design of this pair, as well as the other table in the collection (lot 40) is probably earlier than the drawing in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris (no. 723C3).
Boulle delivered a large table on six legs to the King in 1681. As early as 1683 Monseigneur the Grand Dauphin ordered from him: deux tables de marqueterie ainsi qu'un pied de cabinet en cristal for 1650 livres.
In the 1687 Inventory after the death of the minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert: Une table posée sur six pieds et deux guéridons à fond d'écaille de tortue d'ouvrage de marqueterie de cuivre à pied et ciselé façon des Gobelins aux armes dudit défunt seigneur 200 is listed. This set of three pieces - probably by Cucci - was sold in 1687 by his widow to Lallier for 250 livres.
Colbert's successor Louvois owned, Une table dont le dessus est orné d'un dessin de feuillage de cuivre en marqueterie sur un fond d'étain fin et le pied rempli d'ornement de sculpture dorée.
Another table seized during the Revolution from the duc de Mouchy was described as follows: -une autre table de boule à dessin de marqueterie à fond d'écaille en dessin colorié dont il manque plusieurs parties et le masque en bronze du tiroir et est à quatre pieds et en console a tete de femme.
THE WEST WYCOMBE PROVENANCE
Although family tradition has it that this table and the torchères en suite (lot 34) were purchased by Sir George Dashwood, 5th Bart., around 1854-6 - and this certainly appears to be the case with regards to the torchères - research has yielded neither an 18th or 19th Century sale for this table. Whilst such research is never exhaustive and thus any hypothesis is pure conjecture, it is certainly a possibility that Dashwood acquired the Beckford/Shrewsbury torchères, with their unusual laurel-bound rim, to flank a table already in his possession. It is interesting to note, therefore, that Sir Francis Dashwood (d.1781) was heir to the Le Despencers of Mereworth Castle, Kent. Styling himself as Baron Despencer, Sir Francis inherited Mereworth and its contents on the death of his uncle in 1762, and although he made various minor architectural improvements to both the stables and church during his tenure, he maintained West Wycombe as his principal seat. Through this inheritance, Dashwood owned the floral marquetry table de milieu by Boulle which is now in the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles (C. Bremer-David, Decorative Arts An Illustrated Summary Catalogue of the Collections of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, 1993, no.58, pp. 46-47), which was subsequently sold by the Le Despencer heirs in 1831. Could the West Wycombe table also have formed part of the Le Despencer legacy, taken by Sir Francis to West Wycombe?
Interestingly, both the table and torchères display the same distinctive ormolu border infrequently found in Boulle's oeuvre, and as they date stylistically from the same period and would originally have formed complimentary parts of just such a pier set in the late 17th Century, it is extremely possible that they originally belonged to the same commission.
Sculpteur du Roi in 1672.
Two very similar tables are described in the posthumous inventory of Louis XIV's furniture compiled in 1718 under no. 770: deux belles tables en marqueterie de cuivre et d'étain, sur fond d'écaille de tortue, aiant sur le bord un carderon de bronze doré en feuilles de chêne et un tiroir au milieu, portées sur quatre consoles de même marqueterie représentant quatre thermes de femmes de bronze doré, longues chacune de trois pieds deux pouces et vingt deux pouces de large; avec chacune un gradin de même marqueterie à cinq tiroirs dont quatre fermant à clef et un qui se tire par un bouton.
The tables had already left the Royal Garde-meuble by 1775 and were probably sold around 1750.
An identical table in contre-partie marquetry but now missing its marquetry top is in the collection of H. M. The Queen (see H. Clifford Smith, Buckingham Palace, London, 1931, fig. 256). This and the table in this lot must originally have been conceived as a pair.
The design of this pair, as well as the other table in the collection (lot 40) is probably earlier than the drawing in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris (no. 723C3).
Boulle delivered a large table on six legs to the King in 1681. As early as 1683 Monseigneur the Grand Dauphin ordered from him: deux tables de marqueterie ainsi qu'un pied de cabinet en cristal for 1650 livres.
In the 1687 Inventory after the death of the minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert: Une table posée sur six pieds et deux guéridons à fond d'écaille de tortue d'ouvrage de marqueterie de cuivre à pied et ciselé façon des Gobelins aux armes dudit défunt seigneur 200 is listed. This set of three pieces - probably by Cucci - was sold in 1687 by his widow to Lallier for 250 livres.
Colbert's successor Louvois owned, Une table dont le dessus est orné d'un dessin de feuillage de cuivre en marqueterie sur un fond d'étain fin et le pied rempli d'ornement de sculpture dorée.
Another table seized during the Revolution from the duc de Mouchy was described as follows: -une autre table de boule à dessin de marqueterie à fond d'écaille en dessin colorié dont il manque plusieurs parties et le masque en bronze du tiroir et est à quatre pieds et en console a tete de femme.
THE WEST WYCOMBE PROVENANCE
Although family tradition has it that this table and the torchères en suite (lot 34) were purchased by Sir George Dashwood, 5th Bart., around 1854-6 - and this certainly appears to be the case with regards to the torchères - research has yielded neither an 18th or 19th Century sale for this table. Whilst such research is never exhaustive and thus any hypothesis is pure conjecture, it is certainly a possibility that Dashwood acquired the Beckford/Shrewsbury torchères, with their unusual laurel-bound rim, to flank a table already in his possession. It is interesting to note, therefore, that Sir Francis Dashwood (d.1781) was heir to the Le Despencers of Mereworth Castle, Kent. Styling himself as Baron Despencer, Sir Francis inherited Mereworth and its contents on the death of his uncle in 1762, and although he made various minor architectural improvements to both the stables and church during his tenure, he maintained West Wycombe as his principal seat. Through this inheritance, Dashwood owned the floral marquetry table de milieu by Boulle which is now in the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles (C. Bremer-David, Decorative Arts An Illustrated Summary Catalogue of the Collections of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, 1993, no.58, pp. 46-47), which was subsequently sold by the Le Despencer heirs in 1831. Could the West Wycombe table also have formed part of the Le Despencer legacy, taken by Sir Francis to West Wycombe?
Interestingly, both the table and torchères display the same distinctive ormolu border infrequently found in Boulle's oeuvre, and as they date stylistically from the same period and would originally have formed complimentary parts of just such a pier set in the late 17th Century, it is extremely possible that they originally belonged to the same commission.