ATTRIBUTED TO JANSEN, CIRCA 1920

Kasteel de Haar is one of the most significant monuments in the Netherlands. The house was restored on the occasion of the marriage in 1887 of Etienne van Zuylen to Hélène de Rothschild by the architect Cuyper. At de Haar, Cuypers employed the Gothic style, which was one of the revival styles of the 19th Century which he had used in the Rijksmuseum. An important source of inspiration was the oeuvre of the French contemporary architect Viollet-le-Duc, and more specifically the Château de Pierrefonds. Other influences are likely to have been drawn from homes built by Hélène's family, such as the Renaissance-style château de Ferrières, near Paris, which was created by her grandfather, James de Rothschild. He commissioned Joseph Praxton, of Crystal Palace fame, to build this château after having seen his London cousin Meyer de Rothschild's Buckinghamshire castle Mentmore Towers, built slightly earlier by the same architect. Cuyper's desire for a coherent style soon brought him into conflict with Baron van Zuylen and his wife, who were not dogmatic followers of the Gothic style and who also favoured the fashionable eclectic and exotic tastes of the late 19th Century. Therefore, most of the furniture was in the late 19th Century Edwardian style, although the van Zuylens opted for the Neo-Louis XV and -Louis XVI styles when decorating their own bedrooms. An equally significant role was played by the celebrated Paris company F. Jansen who had already supplied furniture to the van Zuylens' Paris mansion on 86, Avenue du Bois (now Avenue Foch) and their Mediterranean residence in Nice. The first documented acquisitions from this decorator and antique dealer date from the autumn of 1895 and include a tapestry and various items of furniture. Two crates numbered J.H.J. 2566-1567 containing a commode and its marble top were delivered on 30 August 1902. Jansen also assisted in the shipping of 7 crates of furniture which were removed from their Paris home. A year later, an even larger delivery was made and comprised of no less than 26 crates.

For a note on Jansen, please see lot 306.