ATTRIBUTED TO JEAN-FRANCOIS OEBEN, CIRCA 1765

Details

A LATE LOUIS XV TULIPWOOD, SYCAMORE, EBONY AND FRUITWOOD PETIT SECRETAIRE
ATTRIBUTED TO JEAN-FRANCOIS OEBEN, CIRCA 1765
Decorated overall with floral marquetry, the top with scrolling border surrounding a posy of flowers, the frieze with guilloche motif above a flowering tree opening to reveal a gilt-tooled leather-lined writing-surface, an open compartment and one drawer, the lower section with glazed cupboard door enclosing two shelves on ogee bracket feet
38 ½ in. (98 cm.) high; 12 in. (30 cm.) wide; 6 ¾ in. (17 cm.) deep

Provenance

With Dalva Brothers; sold Christie's, Paris, 23 November 2021, lot 133.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Amelia Walker Director, Specialist Head of Private & Iconic Collections

awalker@christies.com +44 20 7389 2085

Lot Essay

The quality of craftsmanship and the overall form of this sécretaire indicate that it was the work of an exceptional cabinet-maker. Whilst the curvature of the legs harks back to the Louis XV period, the slender rectangular body indicates the influence of the nascent Louis XVI style. Although not stamped, it bears all the hallmarks of the celebrated ébéniste Jean-François Oeben (1721-1763). Both the quality of the marquetry and the pictorial effect of the floral composition as well as the fluidity of the design, on the central panel and the side panels, are reminiscent of Oeben's oeuvre. Furthermore, the entrelac frieze of the upper section echoes friezes that can be found in particular on numerous 'Transitional' commodes stamped by him. The present lot can be compared to a stylistically very similar sécretaire stamped by Oeben, offered for sale at Sotheby's, New York, 25 April 1998, lot 338.

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