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Lot Essay
Elegant in their sober combination of mahogany, gilt-bronze and rouge griotte marble, these consoles embody the authority and confidence implicit in the Empire period’s interpretation of neoclassicism. Long gracing the salon of the château de Digoine in Burgundy, these consoles were likely commissioned at the height of the Empire period by Aimé Jacques Marie Constant de Moreton de Chabrillan (1780-1847), a figure at the heart of the Napoleonic court.
THE DESIGN
The architectural form of the consoles, with their columnar legs, rectangular plinth and mirror-plated back was prevalent from about 1810 and relates to the work of François-Honoré-Georges Jacob-Desmalter (1770-1841) and in particular to a white and grey-painted console delivered on 10 July 1810 to the salon des princes in the Grand Trianon of Versailles (Ledoux-Lebard, op. cit.). The mounts on the present consoles, composed of palmettes, classical female masks and laurel wreaths are similarly typical of the iconography of the period and are identical to the mounts on the frieze of a pair of consoles of square supports sold Sotheby’s, 4 December 2008. Interestingly, the present consoles are en suite with a chimneypiece in the salon of the château de Digoine. Made of rouge griotte marble, the chimneypiece is identical to these consoles in its shape and ormolu mounts and was almost certainly commissioned for the château.
THE CHATEAU DE DIGOINE AND THE COMTE DE CHABRILLAN
A highlight of Burgundy’s architectural repertoire, the medieval château de Digoine underwent extensive modification in the 18th century under the direction of the notable architect Edme Verniquet (1727-1804). With his grand transformation of the north and south facades, Verniquet created a modern and impressive residence fit for the de Reclesne family, one of Burgundy’s most important. In 1807 the château was inherited by Aimé Jacques Marie Constant de Moreton de Chabrillan (1780-1847), Chamberlain to Napoleon from 1809 and a decorated soldier. Moreton de Chabrillan was particularly close to the Emperor and played a significant role in his Russian campaign of 1812. Almost certainly produced in the years following his inheritance of Digoine while he was at the height of imperial favour, the commission of these consoles so emblematic of their era is typical of a man like Chabrillan who owed his position to the establishment of the Empire. Chabrillan and his descendants continued to enhance the château with the construction of a celebrated theatre and a neo-gothic library in the Charles X period. Sold to Pierre de Croix in 1908 who restored the château, Digoine’s collection remained with his descendants until dispersed in 2012.
Elegant in their sober combination of mahogany, gilt-bronze and rouge griotte marble, these consoles embody the authority and confidence implicit in the Empire period’s interpretation of neoclassicism. Long gracing the salon of the château de Digoine in Burgundy, these consoles were likely commissioned at the height of the Empire period by Aimé Jacques Marie Constant de Moreton de Chabrillan (1780-1847), a figure at the heart of the Napoleonic court.
THE DESIGN
The architectural form of the consoles, with their columnar legs, rectangular plinth and mirror-plated back was prevalent from about 1810 and relates to the work of François-Honoré-Georges Jacob-Desmalter (1770-1841) and in particular to a white and grey-painted console delivered on 10 July 1810 to the salon des princes in the Grand Trianon of Versailles (Ledoux-Lebard, op. cit.). The mounts on the present consoles, composed of palmettes, classical female masks and laurel wreaths are similarly typical of the iconography of the period and are identical to the mounts on the frieze of a pair of consoles of square supports sold Sotheby’s, 4 December 2008. Interestingly, the present consoles are en suite with a chimneypiece in the salon of the château de Digoine. Made of rouge griotte marble, the chimneypiece is identical to these consoles in its shape and ormolu mounts and was almost certainly commissioned for the château.
THE CHATEAU DE DIGOINE AND THE COMTE DE CHABRILLAN
A highlight of Burgundy’s architectural repertoire, the medieval château de Digoine underwent extensive modification in the 18th century under the direction of the notable architect Edme Verniquet (1727-1804). With his grand transformation of the north and south facades, Verniquet created a modern and impressive residence fit for the de Reclesne family, one of Burgundy’s most important. In 1807 the château was inherited by Aimé Jacques Marie Constant de Moreton de Chabrillan (1780-1847), Chamberlain to Napoleon from 1809 and a decorated soldier. Moreton de Chabrillan was particularly close to the Emperor and played a significant role in his Russian campaign of 1812. Almost certainly produced in the years following his inheritance of Digoine while he was at the height of imperial favour, the commission of these consoles so emblematic of their era is typical of a man like Chabrillan who owed his position to the establishment of the Empire. Chabrillan and his descendants continued to enhance the château with the construction of a celebrated theatre and a neo-gothic library in the Charles X period. Sold to Pierre de Croix in 1908 who restored the château, Digoine’s collection remained with his descendants until dispersed in 2012.