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Lot Essay
Within the oeuvre of the master craftsman Charles Honoré Lannuier, case furniture is extremely rare. Among the many objects signed by or attributed to Lannuier in the recent exhibition of his work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, only nine case pieces, including the bureau offered here, were included. While this bureau is not labeled, it is the mate to a nearly identical labeled bureau in the collection of the Diplomatic Reception Rooms at the Department of State (figure 1). This pair represents the only known examples of this form made by Lannuier.
A detailed examination reveals the close relationship between these two bureaus, and indicates that they were made as a pair. Visually, the bureaus "move" in opposite directions, most notably in the highly figured, book-matched mahogany veneers on the drawer fronts that point in opposite directions. Furthermore, the spiral twists of the mirror supports are turned in opposite directions, with the present example rotating counter-clockwise and the State Department's example rotating clockwise. This suggests that they were conceived as an "opposing" or "facing" pair, meant to stand as pendants against a bedroom wall.
While Lannuier promoted himself as a "Cabinetmaker from France" and employed French craftsmen in his shop, he was saavy enough to incorporate the styles that were currently in vogue in New York. The great success enjoyed by the rival shop of Duncan Phyfe would certainly have been a clear signal to Lannuier that Phyfe's Anglo-inspired furniture was highly sought after by wealthy New York consumers. So, while maintaining and showcasing his "Frenchness," Lannuier also borrowed design elements from Anglo-inspired furniture. This bureau and its mate are clearly examples of Lannuier's genius in this regard, for they conform in many ways to historically Anglo-inspired furniture of New York during the period, yet in their details they maintain some of Lannuier's French aesthetic. While the fully turned columns with gilt bronze capitals and dramatically grained mahogany veneer are in keeping with the French taste, the leaf carving of the mirror uprights and the legs are in keeping with the products of Phyfe and other Anglo-inspired cabinetmakers.
These bureaus were likely made late in Lannuier's career, in the late 1810s, and by this date furniture more clearly in the French taste was becoming popular, thanks in part to the influence of Lannuier. These bureaus conform to entries in the cabinetmaker's price books of the day of "French Bureau" a new entry and a clear indication of this acceptance. Sideboards, presses, and bedsteads also appeared in price books with the word French for the first time (see Kenny, Honoré Lannuier: Cabinetmaker from Paris (New York, 1998), p. 82).
Unlike many later dressing bureaus of the 1820s, this example is relatively diminutive and exceptionally fine. It is among the earliest known examples of the form, and is a great rarity among the work of New York's finest cabinetmaker of the early 19th century.
A detailed examination reveals the close relationship between these two bureaus, and indicates that they were made as a pair. Visually, the bureaus "move" in opposite directions, most notably in the highly figured, book-matched mahogany veneers on the drawer fronts that point in opposite directions. Furthermore, the spiral twists of the mirror supports are turned in opposite directions, with the present example rotating counter-clockwise and the State Department's example rotating clockwise. This suggests that they were conceived as an "opposing" or "facing" pair, meant to stand as pendants against a bedroom wall.
While Lannuier promoted himself as a "Cabinetmaker from France" and employed French craftsmen in his shop, he was saavy enough to incorporate the styles that were currently in vogue in New York. The great success enjoyed by the rival shop of Duncan Phyfe would certainly have been a clear signal to Lannuier that Phyfe's Anglo-inspired furniture was highly sought after by wealthy New York consumers. So, while maintaining and showcasing his "Frenchness," Lannuier also borrowed design elements from Anglo-inspired furniture. This bureau and its mate are clearly examples of Lannuier's genius in this regard, for they conform in many ways to historically Anglo-inspired furniture of New York during the period, yet in their details they maintain some of Lannuier's French aesthetic. While the fully turned columns with gilt bronze capitals and dramatically grained mahogany veneer are in keeping with the French taste, the leaf carving of the mirror uprights and the legs are in keeping with the products of Phyfe and other Anglo-inspired cabinetmakers.
These bureaus were likely made late in Lannuier's career, in the late 1810s, and by this date furniture more clearly in the French taste was becoming popular, thanks in part to the influence of Lannuier. These bureaus conform to entries in the cabinetmaker's price books of the day of "French Bureau" a new entry and a clear indication of this acceptance. Sideboards, presses, and bedsteads also appeared in price books with the word French for the first time (see Kenny, Honoré Lannuier: Cabinetmaker from Paris (New York, 1998), p. 82).
Unlike many later dressing bureaus of the 1820s, this example is relatively diminutive and exceptionally fine. It is among the earliest known examples of the form, and is a great rarity among the work of New York's finest cabinetmaker of the early 19th century.