Lot Essay
The construction of the offered lot may suggest that this bureau plat was made in the latter part of the second quarter of the 19th Century, There are several evidences of this, particularly the wide, flat dovetails, high quality brass inlay, and the hand-milled screws with cropped ends completed with thick tortoiseshell veneer.
Five leading cabinet makers were producing furniture for the aristocracy and the emerging merchant-class during the second quarter of the 19th Century. Specifically noted are Befort Pere, his son Befort Jeune, Jean Beurdeley, Joseph Cremer and Frédéric Roux (brother of Alexander Roux, American, who was located on Broadway in New York), all of whom produced exemplary pieces similar to the offered lot. Two such works of similar design are illustrated in Chrisopher Payne, 19th Century European Furniture, 1981, page 108, as well as a bureau, sold Christie's Ireland, Eniskerry, Co. Wicklow, Ireland, September 25, 1984, lot 489, Powerscourt sale.
Five leading cabinet makers were producing furniture for the aristocracy and the emerging merchant-class during the second quarter of the 19th Century. Specifically noted are Befort Pere, his son Befort Jeune, Jean Beurdeley, Joseph Cremer and Frédéric Roux (brother of Alexander Roux, American, who was located on Broadway in New York), all of whom produced exemplary pieces similar to the offered lot. Two such works of similar design are illustrated in Chrisopher Payne, 19th Century European Furniture, 1981, page 108, as well as a bureau, sold Christie's Ireland, Eniskerry, Co. Wicklow, Ireland, September 25, 1984, lot 489, Powerscourt sale.