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Lot Essay
Godefroy Dester, maître in 1774.
Based in the rue du Faubourg-Saint-Antoine until the 1790s, Godefroy Dester ran a notable and prosperous workshop. In addition to the more conventional marquetry furniture, Dester’s oeuvre also comprised a small number of beautifully veneered commodes, secrétaires and cartonniers, which demonstrate the particular care he took in choosing the most exotic veneers. The use of veneers such as flamed, plum-pudding or other lustrous types of mahogany, set against simple yet finely-chased gilt bronze mounts, allow us to relate Dester's production to that of Adam Weisweiler or Guillaume Beneman. Indeed, a number of commodes a vantaux of this model stamped byy one of the three aformentioned ebenistes are known, including:
- a pair stamped Dester, from the collection of Monsieur Lindon, sold Sotheby's, London, 26 June 1964, lot 128.
- a second pair stamped Dester, formerly in the collection of Lord Redesdale, was sold Christie's, Monaco, 20 June 1992, lot 67.
- a third pair stamped Dester, from the Vergottis collection, sold Sotheby's, London, 14 June 2000, lot 236 (£465,500).
- another illustrated in A. Nicolay, L’art et la manière des maîtres ébénistes, Paris, 1956, p. 148, fig. D.
- a single commode stamped Dester, offered Sotheby's, New York, 18 May 1996, lot 395.
- a commode stamped Saunier, in the chateau de Fontainebleau
- a commode stamped Beneman, from the Max Reich collection, sold in London,14 October 1960, lot 186.
- a commode stamped Weisweiler, offered at Tajan, Paris, 9 December 1996, lot 122.
Dester is recorded to have supplied furniture to the Royal family. The comte d’Artois commissioned several pieces from the ébéniste, including a commode supplied in 1778 for his bedchamber in the pavilion of Bagatelle, and his masterpiece, the superb mahogany commode fitted with porcelain plaques depicting floral bouquets, and adorned with rich gilt-bronze mounts modeled as caryatids and scrolls, delivered in 1785 for his bedchamber at the Palais du Temple (sold Christie’s, London, 17 June 1987, lot 70).
Based in the rue du Faubourg-Saint-Antoine until the 1790s, Godefroy Dester ran a notable and prosperous workshop. In addition to the more conventional marquetry furniture, Dester’s oeuvre also comprised a small number of beautifully veneered commodes, secrétaires and cartonniers, which demonstrate the particular care he took in choosing the most exotic veneers. The use of veneers such as flamed, plum-pudding or other lustrous types of mahogany, set against simple yet finely-chased gilt bronze mounts, allow us to relate Dester's production to that of Adam Weisweiler or Guillaume Beneman. Indeed, a number of commodes a vantaux of this model stamped byy one of the three aformentioned ebenistes are known, including:
- a pair stamped Dester, from the collection of Monsieur Lindon, sold Sotheby's, London, 26 June 1964, lot 128.
- a second pair stamped Dester, formerly in the collection of Lord Redesdale, was sold Christie's, Monaco, 20 June 1992, lot 67.
- a third pair stamped Dester, from the Vergottis collection, sold Sotheby's, London, 14 June 2000, lot 236 (£465,500).
- another illustrated in A. Nicolay, L’art et la manière des maîtres ébénistes, Paris, 1956, p. 148, fig. D.
- a single commode stamped Dester, offered Sotheby's, New York, 18 May 1996, lot 395.
- a commode stamped Saunier, in the chateau de Fontainebleau
- a commode stamped Beneman, from the Max Reich collection, sold in London,14 October 1960, lot 186.
- a commode stamped Weisweiler, offered at Tajan, Paris, 9 December 1996, lot 122.
Dester is recorded to have supplied furniture to the Royal family. The comte d’Artois commissioned several pieces from the ébéniste, including a commode supplied in 1778 for his bedchamber in the pavilion of Bagatelle, and his masterpiece, the superb mahogany commode fitted with porcelain plaques depicting floral bouquets, and adorned with rich gilt-bronze mounts modeled as caryatids and scrolls, delivered in 1785 for his bedchamber at the Palais du Temple (sold Christie’s, London, 17 June 1987, lot 70).