AN EARLY VICTORIAN BRASS AND TORTOISESHELL 'BOULLE' MARQUETRY OCCASIONAL TABLE
AN EARLY VICTORIAN BRASS AND TORTOISESHELL 'BOULLE' MARQUETRY OCCASIONAL TABLE
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Prospective purchasers are advised that several co… Read more
AN EARLY VICTORIAN BRASS AND TORTOISESHELL 'BOULLE' MARQUETRY OCCASIONAL TABLE

CIRCA 1830-40

Details
AN EARLY VICTORIAN BRASS AND TORTOISESHELL 'BOULLE' MARQUETRY OCCASIONAL TABLE
CIRCA 1830-40
The circular top with scrolling border, the octagonal baluster shaft with conforming decoration, on triform base with later ebonised feet, branded 'G.I. MORANT / NEW BOND ST'
29 in. (74 cm.) high; 20 ¾ in. (53 cm.) diameter
Provenance
Acquired from James Graham-Stewart, London, circa 2006.
Literature
Michael S. Smith, Houses, New York, 2008, pp. 145-6.
Special notice
Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country. This lot will be removed to Christie’s Park Royal. Christie’s will inform you if the lot has been sent offsite. Our removal and storage of the lot is subject to the terms and conditions of storage which can be found at Christies.com/storage and our fees for storage are set out in the table below - these will apply whether the lot remains with Christie’s or is removed elsewhere. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Christie’s Park Royal. All collections from Christie’s Park Royal will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com. If the lot remains at Christie’s it will be available for collection on any working day 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lots are not available for collection at weekends.
Sale room notice
Please note the ~ means the lot incorporates material from endangered species which could result in export restrictions.

Brought to you by

Charlotte Young
Charlotte Young

Lot Essay

This striking ‘boulle’ or ‘buhl’ table, branded with the stamp ‘G.I. MORANT/NEW BOND STREET’, was almost certainly retailed rather than executed by the Morant firm. Established in 1790 by George Morant (d. 1839), they engaged in a diverse number of interior decorating activities. From 1825-39, they held a Royal warrant, and in the late 1830s were supplying French-style furniture inlaid with ‘buhl’ applied with the Morant stamp for Queen Adelaide’s apartment at Mamhead, Devon (C. Hussey, ‘Mamhead, Devon – II: The Property of Sir Ralph Newman, Bt.’, Country Life, 2 June 1955, p. 1430). In 1839, G.I. Morant succeeded to his father’s business and was granted the Royal Appointment of cabinet-maker to Queen Victoria in 1842. Some of the firm’s ‘buhl’ furniture had panels supplied by Jeandon of boulevard Bourdon, Paris, a dealer and cabinet-maker specialising in marquetry - although typically Jeandon also stamped his furniture - for example a Louis XIV-style ormolu-mounted contre-partie ‘buhl’ writing-table, sold Christie’s, London, 28 September 2006, lot 18 and a Morant-stamped ‘buhl’ ladies writing-desk, circa 1840, offered in an Edinburgh auction on 2 August 2008.

Cabinet-makers specialising in the art of ‘buhl’ started to appear in London between 1800 and 1830. Their specialist craft was the ability to create furniture to resemble 17th and 18th century French originals. Classified as ‘Buhl Manufacturers’ in London’s commercial directories, their number included Thomas Parker of Warwick Street, Joseph Binns of Frederick Place and the émigré
Louis C. Le Gagineur. Furniture applied with ‘buhl’ in this period was made fashionable by George, Prince Regent and his intimate circle; the former was acquiring ‘buhl’ furniture for the Royal Pavilion, Brighton, including ‘A Very handsome Metalic Buhl ornament Library Table…’ and ‘A handsome Metalic Buhl ornament Table - the companion to the one Delivered July 26’ (M. Levy, ‘Sincerest Form of Flattery’, Country Life, 15 June 1989, pp. 180-181, fig. 8).

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