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Lot Essay
Bernard II van Risen Burgh, maître in 1733.
THE PRICE IN THE 18TH CENTURY
The price of this model of secrétaire in the 18th century is precisely recorded in Simon-Philippe Poirier's bill to the Earl of Coventry, dated 9 September 1763, when the identical example was invoiced as 'Une secrétaire en armoire garnie de bronze doré etc....1000 livres'.
THE DATE OF MANUFACTURE
In 1755, B.V.R.B. supplied the marchand-mercier Lazare Duvaux with a secrétaire-bibliothèque which the latter delivered to Louis XV for the Trianon on the 20 March at a cost of 2500 livres. Now in the Musie de Tessé, Le Mans and illustrated in P. Verlet, Le Mobilier Royal Français, Paris, rev. ed., 1992, Vol.II, pp.61-2. This latter secrétaire, although of a different form with a glazed bibliothèque section above the fallfront, displays several of the same distinctive mounts.
Whilst the models for the bronzes were, therefore, already in existence by 1755, the absence of a secrétaire of this type in the Inventory taken following Lazare Duvaux's death in 1758, as well as the fact that the Earl of Coventry acquired his in 1763 suggests that the majority of these secrétaires were executed around 1760.
SECRÉTAIRES OF THIS MODEL IN THE 18TH CENTURY
In May 1758, the marchand-mercier Lazare Duvaux delivered for Louis XV's cabinet at the château de Saint-Hubert:- 'Un secrétaire en armoire à contours plaqué en bois de rose et fleurs garni en bronze doré d'or moulu. Le marbre de serancolin avec moulures dessus et dessous et trois cornets d'argent 1 320 l'.
In the sale of the marchand Bonnemet, 4 December 1771, a secrétaire by Bernard, the name by which B.V.R.B. was known to his contemporaries, was listed as lot 155:- '155 Un grand secrétaire de même bois de rose, et fleurs de rapport en bois violet, garni en dedans de deux rangs de tiroirs, très richement orné en bronze ciselé et doré: il a 4 pieds et demi de longeur 1 300 l..'
A further secrétaire of this model is mentioned with the Dupleix de Mezy family in 1824:- 'Un secrétaire avec abattant en bois de placage avec dessins en fleurs richement orné de bronze ciselé et doré, à dessus de marbre d'Italie.'
RELATED MARQUETRY SECRÉTAIRES
This secrétaire belongs to a celebrated group, executed in both Japanese lacquer and bois de bout floral marquetry. In all, nine other examples in floral marquetry are recorded:-
- One was sold by Poirier in 1763 to the 6th Earl of Coventry for 1000 livres, and passed by descent at Croome Court, Worcestershire until sold at Sotheby's London, 25 June 1948, lot 173. Subsequently acquired for the Chester Beatty Collection, it was sold from the collection of the Maharani of Baroda, Paris, Palais Galliera, 11 December 1962, lot 275A and again by M. and Mme. Delplace, Sotheby's Monaco, 15 June 1995, lot 106;
- Another, now in the Musée d'Art et Histoire, Geneva (Lord Mitchelham Bequest), was offered at Messrs. Hampton & Sons house sale, London, 23 November 1926, lot 182 and subsequently at Sotheby's Monaco, 22 May 1978, lot 236;
- Another from the Riahi Collection was sold at Christie's New York, 2 November 2000, lot 15 ($864,000). This had formerly been in the collections of Sir Hervey R. Bruce, Bt., sold Christie's London, 17 March 1921, lot 140 (1575 guineas to Fabre), Hugh Seymour Berry, 1st Lord Buckland (1877-1928), sold Christie's London, 21 May 1936, lot 54, Sir Alfred Chester Beatty and The Maharani of Baroda, Neuilly, sold Palais Galliéra, Paris, 11 December 1962, lot 275B;
- Another was sold from the collection of Mme. Dubert-Douine in Paris, 11 April 1946, lot 147;
- Another, sold at Christie's London, 9 May 1895, lot 234, was subsequently sold by the Princesse de Faucigny-Lucinge, Paris, Galerie Charpentier, 3 December 1952, lot 202 (illustrated in J. Nicolaÿ, L'Art et la Manière des Maîtres Ébénistes Français du XVIIIe Siècle, Paris, 1986, p.86, fig.1);
- Another, formerly in the Farquhar Collection and then Henry Ford II, was sold at Sotheby's New York, 25 February 1978, lot 82 and, again at Sotheby's London, 24 November 1978, lot 12. It was subsequently with Galérie Maurice Segoura, Paris;
- Another known to have been in the collection of Sir John Hope, Bt., at Pinkie House, Scotland, was with the dealer E. Jonas in 1933 and in the collection of Arthur Veil-Picard, Paris in 1934; with Maurice Chalom, Paris; the collection of Habib Sabet, Paris, 1974 (who paired it with No.8) and then with Partridge, London, 1989;
- Another is in a Private Collection in New York.
- The last, reputedly originally supplied to Madame Infante, the daughter of Louis XV, also owned by Arthur Veil-Picard in Paris in 1934 and, subsequently, by Habib Sabet in 1974, was with Partridge, London in 1989. This latter example is illustrated in P. Verlet, Les Ebénistes du XVIIIe Sècle, Paris, 1963, p.78.
All nine of these secrétaires are for all intents and purposes identical; however, only the Riahi, Wildenstein and Sabet secrétaire (no.7) on the above list display the refinement in the marquetry of the fallfront, with the bois de bout floral tendrils filling the whole panel, as opposed to the rather sparser decoration seen on the other examples.
The extremely close similarities within this group prevents any definitive identification of the secrétaire sold in Baron d'Ivry's sale, Paris, 7 May 1884, lot 273; in that the latter displayed a red griotte marble top, it could equally well correspond with either this secrétaire, or numbers 2, 3 and 7 listed above. However, as the provenance of both numbers 2 and 7 seems to be fairly conclusive during the 1920s, either this or the Riahi secrétaire does appear to be that sold by Sir Hervey R. Bruce, Bt. at Christies London, 17 March 1921, lot 140. It was described thus:-
'A LOUIS XV. MARQUETERIE SECRITAIRE, with fall-down front and folding doors below, inlaid with branches of foliage on tulip-wood ground with king-wood borders, mounted with or-molu borders and corners chased with compositions of foliage and scrollwork, and surmounted by a veined red and white marble slab- 41 in. wide - stamped 'BVBB.ME'.
Of Irish descent, on his maternal side Sir Hervey Bruce was the grandson of Percy Riccardo of Bramley Park, Surrey, a successful financier and consummate builder during the first half of the 19th century.
A further secrétaire, probably one of the above, was exhibited from the collection of the comtesse Terray in Paris in 1888, in 'L'Art Français sous Louis XIV et Louis XV', no.213.
THE PRICE IN THE 18TH CENTURY
The price of this model of secrétaire in the 18th century is precisely recorded in Simon-Philippe Poirier's bill to the Earl of Coventry, dated 9 September 1763, when the identical example was invoiced as 'Une secrétaire en armoire garnie de bronze doré etc....1000 livres'.
THE DATE OF MANUFACTURE
In 1755, B.V.R.B. supplied the marchand-mercier Lazare Duvaux with a secrétaire-bibliothèque which the latter delivered to Louis XV for the Trianon on the 20 March at a cost of 2500 livres. Now in the Musie de Tessé, Le Mans and illustrated in P. Verlet, Le Mobilier Royal Français, Paris, rev. ed., 1992, Vol.II, pp.61-2. This latter secrétaire, although of a different form with a glazed bibliothèque section above the fallfront, displays several of the same distinctive mounts.
Whilst the models for the bronzes were, therefore, already in existence by 1755, the absence of a secrétaire of this type in the Inventory taken following Lazare Duvaux's death in 1758, as well as the fact that the Earl of Coventry acquired his in 1763 suggests that the majority of these secrétaires were executed around 1760.
SECRÉTAIRES OF THIS MODEL IN THE 18TH CENTURY
In May 1758, the marchand-mercier Lazare Duvaux delivered for Louis XV's cabinet at the château de Saint-Hubert:- 'Un secrétaire en armoire à contours plaqué en bois de rose et fleurs garni en bronze doré d'or moulu. Le marbre de serancolin avec moulures dessus et dessous et trois cornets d'argent 1 320 l'.
In the sale of the marchand Bonnemet, 4 December 1771, a secrétaire by Bernard, the name by which B.V.R.B. was known to his contemporaries, was listed as lot 155:- '155 Un grand secrétaire de même bois de rose, et fleurs de rapport en bois violet, garni en dedans de deux rangs de tiroirs, très richement orné en bronze ciselé et doré: il a 4 pieds et demi de longeur 1 300 l..'
A further secrétaire of this model is mentioned with the Dupleix de Mezy family in 1824:- 'Un secrétaire avec abattant en bois de placage avec dessins en fleurs richement orné de bronze ciselé et doré, à dessus de marbre d'Italie.'
RELATED MARQUETRY SECRÉTAIRES
This secrétaire belongs to a celebrated group, executed in both Japanese lacquer and bois de bout floral marquetry. In all, nine other examples in floral marquetry are recorded:-
- One was sold by Poirier in 1763 to the 6th Earl of Coventry for 1000 livres, and passed by descent at Croome Court, Worcestershire until sold at Sotheby's London, 25 June 1948, lot 173. Subsequently acquired for the Chester Beatty Collection, it was sold from the collection of the Maharani of Baroda, Paris, Palais Galliera, 11 December 1962, lot 275A and again by M. and Mme. Delplace, Sotheby's Monaco, 15 June 1995, lot 106;
- Another, now in the Musée d'Art et Histoire, Geneva (Lord Mitchelham Bequest), was offered at Messrs. Hampton & Sons house sale, London, 23 November 1926, lot 182 and subsequently at Sotheby's Monaco, 22 May 1978, lot 236;
- Another from the Riahi Collection was sold at Christie's New York, 2 November 2000, lot 15 ($864,000). This had formerly been in the collections of Sir Hervey R. Bruce, Bt., sold Christie's London, 17 March 1921, lot 140 (1575 guineas to Fabre), Hugh Seymour Berry, 1st Lord Buckland (1877-1928), sold Christie's London, 21 May 1936, lot 54, Sir Alfred Chester Beatty and The Maharani of Baroda, Neuilly, sold Palais Galliéra, Paris, 11 December 1962, lot 275B;
- Another was sold from the collection of Mme. Dubert-Douine in Paris, 11 April 1946, lot 147;
- Another, sold at Christie's London, 9 May 1895, lot 234, was subsequently sold by the Princesse de Faucigny-Lucinge, Paris, Galerie Charpentier, 3 December 1952, lot 202 (illustrated in J. Nicolaÿ, L'Art et la Manière des Maîtres Ébénistes Français du XVIIIe Siècle, Paris, 1986, p.86, fig.1);
- Another, formerly in the Farquhar Collection and then Henry Ford II, was sold at Sotheby's New York, 25 February 1978, lot 82 and, again at Sotheby's London, 24 November 1978, lot 12. It was subsequently with Galérie Maurice Segoura, Paris;
- Another known to have been in the collection of Sir John Hope, Bt., at Pinkie House, Scotland, was with the dealer E. Jonas in 1933 and in the collection of Arthur Veil-Picard, Paris in 1934; with Maurice Chalom, Paris; the collection of Habib Sabet, Paris, 1974 (who paired it with No.8) and then with Partridge, London, 1989;
- Another is in a Private Collection in New York.
- The last, reputedly originally supplied to Madame Infante, the daughter of Louis XV, also owned by Arthur Veil-Picard in Paris in 1934 and, subsequently, by Habib Sabet in 1974, was with Partridge, London in 1989. This latter example is illustrated in P. Verlet, Les Ebénistes du XVIIIe Sècle, Paris, 1963, p.78.
All nine of these secrétaires are for all intents and purposes identical; however, only the Riahi, Wildenstein and Sabet secrétaire (no.7) on the above list display the refinement in the marquetry of the fallfront, with the bois de bout floral tendrils filling the whole panel, as opposed to the rather sparser decoration seen on the other examples.
The extremely close similarities within this group prevents any definitive identification of the secrétaire sold in Baron d'Ivry's sale, Paris, 7 May 1884, lot 273; in that the latter displayed a red griotte marble top, it could equally well correspond with either this secrétaire, or numbers 2, 3 and 7 listed above. However, as the provenance of both numbers 2 and 7 seems to be fairly conclusive during the 1920s, either this or the Riahi secrétaire does appear to be that sold by Sir Hervey R. Bruce, Bt. at Christies London, 17 March 1921, lot 140. It was described thus:-
'A LOUIS XV. MARQUETERIE SECRITAIRE, with fall-down front and folding doors below, inlaid with branches of foliage on tulip-wood ground with king-wood borders, mounted with or-molu borders and corners chased with compositions of foliage and scrollwork, and surmounted by a veined red and white marble slab- 41 in. wide - stamped 'BVBB.ME'.
Of Irish descent, on his maternal side Sir Hervey Bruce was the grandson of Percy Riccardo of Bramley Park, Surrey, a successful financier and consummate builder during the first half of the 19th century.
A further secrétaire, probably one of the above, was exhibited from the collection of the comtesse Terray in Paris in 1888, in 'L'Art Français sous Louis XIV et Louis XV', no.213.