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Lot Essay
Jean-François Oeben, ébéniste du roi in 1754 and maître in circa 1761
Simon Oeben, maître in 1769
This elegant model of breakfront commode 'à la grecque', with its elaborate parquetry façade, first evolved in the workshop of Jean-François Oeben around 1750 - 1760 (see F.J.B. Watson, Louis XVI Furniture, 1960, p. 68) and the stylized Greek-key frieze and framing of the breakfront panels as well as the bucranium-cast mounts clearly characterise the nascent neo-classicism of the goût grec style of the late Louis XV period. No fewer than 17 such commodes were made by Oeben for Madame de Pompadour and distributed throughout her residences at Versailles, Ménars and the Château d'Auviliers.
Related commodes à la grecque stamped by Oeben include one in the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu (illustrated in R. Stratmann-Döhler, Jean-François Oeben, Paris, 2002, p. 54), one sold Christie’s, London, 4 December 2008, lot 172 (£79,250), another sold Christie's, New York, 11 November 1978, lot 136, while a further example in a private collection is illustrated in A. Pradère, Les Ebénistes Français de Louis XIV à la Révolution, Paris, 1989, p. 261, fig. 276. The model continued to be employed by Oeben’s son Simon, often with the same ram’s mask chutes, as on a commode sold Christie’s, New York, 29-30 November 2012, lot 217 ($86,500).
This model evidently achieved great success and was soon emulated by other Parisian ébénistes, such as the Dutch-born Jacques Dautriche (maître in 1765) and Pierre Macret (ébéniste suivant la Cour from 1756). A further related, unstamped commode in the Rijksmuseum is illustrated in R. Baarsen, Paris 1650-1900 Decorative Arts in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 2013, pp. 336-9, cat. 81.
Simon Oeben, maître in 1769
This elegant model of breakfront commode 'à la grecque', with its elaborate parquetry façade, first evolved in the workshop of Jean-François Oeben around 1750 - 1760 (see F.J.B. Watson, Louis XVI Furniture, 1960, p. 68) and the stylized Greek-key frieze and framing of the breakfront panels as well as the bucranium-cast mounts clearly characterise the nascent neo-classicism of the goût grec style of the late Louis XV period. No fewer than 17 such commodes were made by Oeben for Madame de Pompadour and distributed throughout her residences at Versailles, Ménars and the Château d'Auviliers.
Related commodes à la grecque stamped by Oeben include one in the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu (illustrated in R. Stratmann-Döhler, Jean-François Oeben, Paris, 2002, p. 54), one sold Christie’s, London, 4 December 2008, lot 172 (£79,250), another sold Christie's, New York, 11 November 1978, lot 136, while a further example in a private collection is illustrated in A. Pradère, Les Ebénistes Français de Louis XIV à la Révolution, Paris, 1989, p. 261, fig. 276. The model continued to be employed by Oeben’s son Simon, often with the same ram’s mask chutes, as on a commode sold Christie’s, New York, 29-30 November 2012, lot 217 ($86,500).
This model evidently achieved great success and was soon emulated by other Parisian ébénistes, such as the Dutch-born Jacques Dautriche (maître in 1765) and Pierre Macret (ébéniste suivant la Cour from 1756). A further related, unstamped commode in the Rijksmuseum is illustrated in R. Baarsen, Paris 1650-1900 Decorative Arts in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 2013, pp. 336-9, cat. 81.