ATTRIBUTED TO MAISON JANSEN, PARIS, CIRCA 1910

It is likely that Clément Linke's son, who bore his father's name and continued the business until the 1940 Paris Occupation, provided the locks and hinges for this extensive suite of dining furniture. While his father worked exclusively for François Linke from 1896 until his death in 1910, Clément younger eventually expanded the firm's register of clientele, which in all likelihood included Maison Jansen, among others. Though unmarked beyond the monogram 'MN', the mélange of the Art Nouveau with historical forms is characteristic of Jansen's work for the South American and Cuban markets circa 1905-1915. The remnants of shipping labels for a Caracas-based exported would support a commission for an affluent South American client and the superior level of the cabinetry would further bolster the attribution. Furthermore, one can assume that Clément would have only have associated himself with an ébéniste of the highest order whose work emulated the quality of François Linke's oeuvre. François Linke's relationship with the celebrated decorating firm is well documented and his earliest creations as a petit patron were manufactured for the established ateliers of Jansen and Krieger (C. Payne, François Linke: The Belle Epoque of French Furniture, Woodbridge, 2003, p. 37).

A pair of bureaux plats of similar design to the present suite and presumably by the same maker was sold Sotheby's, London, 28 February 1997, lot 160.