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Lot Essay
Jean Avisse, maître in 1745.
This majestic Louis XV giltwood fauteuil – of monumental proportions and carved in the round – was almost certainly conceived as a throne chair circa 1755-60 by the talented menuisier Jean Avisse, who became maître in Paris in 1745. It recently resurfaced in a Portuguese Private Collection and is thought to have been part of the purchases of precious and costly works of art made in Paris for King José I (1750-1777) from circa 1756 onwards. These were acquired following the earthquake of 1755 which had devastated Lisbon and its surroundings; many Royal residences and their contents perished, including most of the superb French works of art acquired by the King’s father, Joao V (1706-1750), in various phases in the first half of the 18th Century. The Portuguese Royal collection of French silver was particularly noteworthy, consisting of thousands of items primarily supplied by Thomas Germain (1673-1748) from 1724 but replenished after the earthquake by his son François-Thomas (1726-1791) until 1765 when the workshop closed due to bankruptcy (L. d’Orey in The Age of Baroque in Portugal, Washington, 1993, pp. 167-172). Joao V and his successors demonstrated their exalted status, wealth and power not only with these treasures within the palaces of Belem, Queluz, Ajuda, Mafra but also when travelling in splendid carriages between their residences and beyond. The Royal family’s magnificent collection of carved and gilt carriages was unparalleled in Europe and included various Roman examples such as the example gifted by Pope Clement XI in 1716 and the carriage ordered in Paris in 1715 for the Portuguese Ambassador, count of Ribeira Grande, now both in the Museu Nacional dos Coches, Lisbon (V0007 and V0008).
Ceremonial thrones are without doubt the most powerful emblems of the monarchy and for these King Joao V also turned to the greatest Paris designers and craftsmen. A design for a monumental and richly carved throne bearing the Royal arms of Portugal was conceived by Juste-Aurèle Meissonnier (1695-1750) circa 1728-’30. The latter had been recommended by Robert d’Hermand (c.1670-1739), teacher of Louis XV and advisor to the Portuguese Court on artistic matters since 1723. The King apparently approved the design and the fauteuil was sent by boat to Lisbon in 1732. Unfortunately this splendid throne, described as being made in solid gold and silver, almost certainly disappeared following the earthquake in 1755, necessitating a new throne for King Joao’s successor, King José I, (possibly the present example by Avisse), (P. Fuhring, et. al., Designing the Décor, French drawings from the 18th Century, Lisbon, 2005, nos. 23-24, pp. 92-95). The Kings of Portugal were not the only monarchs to order throne chairs in Paris; a small number of mid-18th Century examples commissioned for other Royal Courts are known to exist. This includes the thrones executed by Nicolas-Quinibert Foliot (maître in 1729) circa 1749 for Louis XV’s daughter, Madame Infante, duchess of Parma (B. Pallot, Le Siege Francais du XVIII Siècle, Paris, 1989, pp. 142-146) and the throne, possibly the grandest Parisian throne chair of its time, supplied in 1741-42 to Clemens August, Elector and Archbishop of Cologne for the coronation of his brother Karl Albrecht as Emperor in Frankfurt in 1742 (R. Baarsen, ‘Throne chairs from the workshop of Jan Baptist Xavery’, Furniture History, XLIII, 2007, p. 108). Within the context of studies into French Royal furniture, these thrones made for foreign courts provide many clues to how their counterparts made for the French King may have looked. The latter were almost certainly all destroyed – in festive Revolutionary gatherings – such as the one in 1793 on Place Louis XV (now Place de la Concorde) depicted in ‘La Fête de l’Unité sur la place de la Révolution’ executed by Pierre-Antoine Demachy (1723-1807), now in Musée Carnavalet, Paris.
The present richly-carved throne – unique in Jean Avisse’s oeuvre and probably his most prestigious commission – is profusely decorated with rockwork, flowers and floral trails; the back, which was clearly meant to be seen, is carved with the same attention to detail and richness. A design for a related chair of generous sinuous outline, again by aforementioned Juste-Aurèle Meissonnier but slightly later than his 1728-’30 throne design, may have been a source of inspiration but this has thus far not been established (Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, 13577). A pair of related fauteuils, from the Akram Ojjeh Collection, was sold, Christie’s Monaco, 11 December 1999, lot 37.
This majestic Louis XV giltwood fauteuil – of monumental proportions and carved in the round – was almost certainly conceived as a throne chair circa 1755-60 by the talented menuisier Jean Avisse, who became maître in Paris in 1745. It recently resurfaced in a Portuguese Private Collection and is thought to have been part of the purchases of precious and costly works of art made in Paris for King José I (1750-1777) from circa 1756 onwards. These were acquired following the earthquake of 1755 which had devastated Lisbon and its surroundings; many Royal residences and their contents perished, including most of the superb French works of art acquired by the King’s father, Joao V (1706-1750), in various phases in the first half of the 18th Century. The Portuguese Royal collection of French silver was particularly noteworthy, consisting of thousands of items primarily supplied by Thomas Germain (1673-1748) from 1724 but replenished after the earthquake by his son François-Thomas (1726-1791) until 1765 when the workshop closed due to bankruptcy (L. d’Orey in The Age of Baroque in Portugal, Washington, 1993, pp. 167-172). Joao V and his successors demonstrated their exalted status, wealth and power not only with these treasures within the palaces of Belem, Queluz, Ajuda, Mafra but also when travelling in splendid carriages between their residences and beyond. The Royal family’s magnificent collection of carved and gilt carriages was unparalleled in Europe and included various Roman examples such as the example gifted by Pope Clement XI in 1716 and the carriage ordered in Paris in 1715 for the Portuguese Ambassador, count of Ribeira Grande, now both in the Museu Nacional dos Coches, Lisbon (V0007 and V0008).
Ceremonial thrones are without doubt the most powerful emblems of the monarchy and for these King Joao V also turned to the greatest Paris designers and craftsmen. A design for a monumental and richly carved throne bearing the Royal arms of Portugal was conceived by Juste-Aurèle Meissonnier (1695-1750) circa 1728-’30. The latter had been recommended by Robert d’Hermand (c.1670-1739), teacher of Louis XV and advisor to the Portuguese Court on artistic matters since 1723. The King apparently approved the design and the fauteuil was sent by boat to Lisbon in 1732. Unfortunately this splendid throne, described as being made in solid gold and silver, almost certainly disappeared following the earthquake in 1755, necessitating a new throne for King Joao’s successor, King José I, (possibly the present example by Avisse), (P. Fuhring, et. al., Designing the Décor, French drawings from the 18th Century, Lisbon, 2005, nos. 23-24, pp. 92-95). The Kings of Portugal were not the only monarchs to order throne chairs in Paris; a small number of mid-18th Century examples commissioned for other Royal Courts are known to exist. This includes the thrones executed by Nicolas-Quinibert Foliot (maître in 1729) circa 1749 for Louis XV’s daughter, Madame Infante, duchess of Parma (B. Pallot, Le Siege Francais du XVIII Siècle, Paris, 1989, pp. 142-146) and the throne, possibly the grandest Parisian throne chair of its time, supplied in 1741-42 to Clemens August, Elector and Archbishop of Cologne for the coronation of his brother Karl Albrecht as Emperor in Frankfurt in 1742 (R. Baarsen, ‘Throne chairs from the workshop of Jan Baptist Xavery’, Furniture History, XLIII, 2007, p. 108). Within the context of studies into French Royal furniture, these thrones made for foreign courts provide many clues to how their counterparts made for the French King may have looked. The latter were almost certainly all destroyed – in festive Revolutionary gatherings – such as the one in 1793 on Place Louis XV (now Place de la Concorde) depicted in ‘La Fête de l’Unité sur la place de la Révolution’ executed by Pierre-Antoine Demachy (1723-1807), now in Musée Carnavalet, Paris.
The present richly-carved throne – unique in Jean Avisse’s oeuvre and probably his most prestigious commission – is profusely decorated with rockwork, flowers and floral trails; the back, which was clearly meant to be seen, is carved with the same attention to detail and richness. A design for a related chair of generous sinuous outline, again by aforementioned Juste-Aurèle Meissonnier but slightly later than his 1728-’30 throne design, may have been a source of inspiration but this has thus far not been established (Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, 13577). A pair of related fauteuils, from the Akram Ojjeh Collection, was sold, Christie’s Monaco, 11 December 1999, lot 37.