CIRCA 1740

This generously proportioned and richly carved salon suite was conceived in the style rocaille of the early Louis XV period of the 1730s and 1740s. Furniture made at this time was frequently unstamped, as the guild rule obliging Parisian furniture-makers to stamp their work was not enforced until 1743. However, the Lehman suite displays distinct characteristics that lead to a possible attribution to the Cresson dynasty of menuisiers. Founded by Charles and Jean Cresson during the Règence and continued by Jean-Baptiste, Louis I, René and Michel during the first half of the 18th century, the Cressons were among the most talented menuisiers of their era. The Cressons shared a workshop on the rue de Cléry Au Gros Chapelet and not surprisingly, there are common traits in all of their documented work. However, specific motifs, such as the pomegranate cresting and the distinct shaped, raised apron appear in the work of Michel (1709-1781) and René (1705-49) Cresson. A pair of fauteuils by Michel Cresson and a pair of chaises by René Cresson from the collection of Maria Callas that exhibit these motifs are illustrated in P. Kjellberg, Le Mobilier Français du XVIIIe Sicle, Paris, 1989, p.210 fig. A and p.211. Another pair of fauteuils by René Cresson was sold from the Wildenstein Collection at Christie's, London, 14 December 2005, lot 359 and a single tabouret by Michel Cresson was sold anonymously at Christie's, London, 7 July 2005, lot 327.