ATTRIBUTED TO THE 'MAITRE AUX PAGODES', POSSIBLY NOEL GERARD, CIRCA 1730

This striking Régence commode en tombeau can be attributed to the mysterious ébéniste 'Maître aux Pagodes' on account of its distinctive gilt-bronze mounts. The angle mounts depict triton masks whose beards are formed of entwined fish tails, which are identical to those found on a group of Régence furniture - two-drawer commodes, commodes en tombeau and bureaux plats - considered to be by the same highly skilled - but thus far unnamed - Parisian cabinet maker. Alexandre Pradère first identified this oeuvre in 1987 considering the ébéniste worthy of a dedicated chapter 'Maître aux Pagodes' in Les ébénistes français de Louis XIV à la Révolution, Paris, 1987, p. 124-127. The ébéniste was named as such on account of his use of Chinoiserie-themed mounts, specifically pagoda mounts, as seen on a two drawer commode now in the collection of the Rijksmuseum [BK-16651], and distinctive dragon mount often found flanking the kneehole to the bureau plats.
In 1996 it was thought that the mystery of the unknown ébéniste had been solved with the discovery of the stamp ‘NG’ – for Noël Gérard – on an extensively mounted Régence tortoiseshell and ebony commode, clearly executed by same hand as the 'Maître aux Pagodes', from the collection of the late Joanne Toor Cummings, Christie’s, New York, 21 May 1996, lot 238. However, Gérard was also known to have acted in the capacity of a marchand as well as ébéniste, retailing the production of his confrères and so it is not possible to firmly attribute this body of work to him.
It has also been suggested that the 'Maître aux Pagodes' could be the work of the Boulle Fils, specifically André-Charles II, as the quality of the mounts and the workmanship compare favourably to those of Boulle’s workshop. This theory is further supported by the reference to an armoire with pagodes described as the work of un fils du celèbre Boulle in the Gaignat sale of 1769. Another possible candidate is the revered ébéniste Charles Cressent, based on a commode being listed in the 1765 sale of his stock as having 'deux pagodes sur les tiroirs'.
The distinctive triton angle mounts may have been inspired by a design by Jean Bernard Toro for the mask on a console table found in Livre de Tables de Diverses Formes, Paris, 1716 [Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Accession Number 38.69.3(27)). They also adorn the pedestal of an associated musical clock depicting Apollo that is attributed to André-Charles Boulle (B. Langer, Die Möbel der Residenz München, Die französischen Möbel des 18. Jahrhunderts, Munich, 1995, vol. I, cat. 5, pp. 53 - 57). It can also be found on a Boulle marquetry bureau plat inlaid in contre-partie sold anonymously Christie’s, New York, 23 October 1998, lot 62; an ebonised bureau plat that was offered anonymously at Sotheby's Monaco, 23 - 24 June 1985, lot 820; a purplewood commode sold anonymously at Pavillion Gabriel, 14 June 1977, lot 146 and finally a purplewood writing-table from the Patiño collection, sold Palais Galliera, 26 November 1975, lot 118 (P. Hughes, The Wallace Collection, Catalogue of Furniture, London, 1996, vol. II, pp. 791 - 792).
Further examples of the work of the 'Maître aux Pagodes' include a bureau plat sold anonymously Christies, New York, 22-23 October 2003, lot 565 ($231,500 including premium); another bureau plat with identical angle mounts sold from the Collection of the Earl of Normanton, Christie's London, 1 July 1982, lot 75 (£102,600 including premium). A two drawer commode sold Christie’s, Monaco, 1 July 1995, lot 198 and was sold subsequently with Thierry de Maigret, Drouot, Paris, 21 June 2019, lot 282.