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Lot Essay
Johann Gottlieb Frost, maître in 1785.
This exceptional chair was produced using dense mahogany and is a perfect example of the bold Neoclassical style developed by David Roentgen following the establishment of his Paris operation in 1780. It is related to a distinguished group of chairs which are all close variants of this design, many of which featuring backs incorporating entwined serpents. Chairs from this group include a side chair sold Christie’s, London, 20 May 2015, lot 89 (£47,500); an armchair sold Christie’s, New York, 30 April 2019, lot 90 ($68,750); and a pair of armchairs sold Christie’s, Paris, 10 September 2018, lot 4 (€81,250). Published examples include D. Fabian, Abraham und David Roentgen: Von der Schreinerwerkstatt zur Kunstmöbel-Manufaktur, Bad Neustadt/Saale, 1992, p. 45, fig. 91 and J. M. Greber, Abraham und David Roentgen, Möbel für Europa, Starnberg, 1980, p. 255. These chairs were either produced in Roentgen’s Neuwied workshop or in Paris under the supervision of his agent, Johann Gottlieb Frost (1746-1814, maître in 1785) or by Frost (to Roentgen’s design) after he took over Roentgen’s Paris operation in 1785.
Although very closely related to Roentgen’s oeuvre, a number of its features suggest that this chair is a work by Frost, who closely followed the practices of Parisian menuisiers. The chair is made entirely of mahogany, which is typical of contemporaneous French seat furniture produced by makers such as Canabas and Stockel. Roentgen only employed solid mahogany for parts of his chairs, such as the legs, while the frames were primarily constructed of walnut and then veneered in mahogany. Additionally, although the mounts on this chair are very similar to those used by Roentgen, his known oeuvre does not feature identical ones. Furthermore, the absence of any chair of this design in German or Russian collections suggests that this piece is unlikely to be a work by Roentgen. Frost is known to have executed variants of Roentgen’s successful “serpent chairs,” as evidenced by five chairs by him formerly in the collection of the French Indologist Emile Senart (see C. Cornet and B. Willscheid, Möbel à la Roentgen: Inspirationen aus der Neuwieder Manufaktur, exh. cat, Neuwied, 2023, p. 109, figs. 24-25). Considering the anomalies in the construction, the differing ormolu mounts, the absence of this model in Roentgen’s recorded oeuvre, and Frost’s proclivity to adapt Roentgen’s work, one can attribute this chair to Johann Gottlieb Frost with certainty. For more information on Frost and his activity, see Michael Sulzbacher’s essay in ibid., pp. 102-110.
This exceptional chair was produced using dense mahogany and is a perfect example of the bold Neoclassical style developed by David Roentgen following the establishment of his Paris operation in 1780. It is related to a distinguished group of chairs which are all close variants of this design, many of which featuring backs incorporating entwined serpents. Chairs from this group include a side chair sold Christie’s, London, 20 May 2015, lot 89 (£47,500); an armchair sold Christie’s, New York, 30 April 2019, lot 90 ($68,750); and a pair of armchairs sold Christie’s, Paris, 10 September 2018, lot 4 (€81,250). Published examples include D. Fabian, Abraham und David Roentgen: Von der Schreinerwerkstatt zur Kunstmöbel-Manufaktur, Bad Neustadt/Saale, 1992, p. 45, fig. 91 and J. M. Greber, Abraham und David Roentgen, Möbel für Europa, Starnberg, 1980, p. 255. These chairs were either produced in Roentgen’s Neuwied workshop or in Paris under the supervision of his agent, Johann Gottlieb Frost (1746-1814, maître in 1785) or by Frost (to Roentgen’s design) after he took over Roentgen’s Paris operation in 1785.
Although very closely related to Roentgen’s oeuvre, a number of its features suggest that this chair is a work by Frost, who closely followed the practices of Parisian menuisiers. The chair is made entirely of mahogany, which is typical of contemporaneous French seat furniture produced by makers such as Canabas and Stockel. Roentgen only employed solid mahogany for parts of his chairs, such as the legs, while the frames were primarily constructed of walnut and then veneered in mahogany. Additionally, although the mounts on this chair are very similar to those used by Roentgen, his known oeuvre does not feature identical ones. Furthermore, the absence of any chair of this design in German or Russian collections suggests that this piece is unlikely to be a work by Roentgen. Frost is known to have executed variants of Roentgen’s successful “serpent chairs,” as evidenced by five chairs by him formerly in the collection of the French Indologist Emile Senart (see C. Cornet and B. Willscheid, Möbel à la Roentgen: Inspirationen aus der Neuwieder Manufaktur, exh. cat, Neuwied, 2023, p. 109, figs. 24-25). Considering the anomalies in the construction, the differing ormolu mounts, the absence of this model in Roentgen’s recorded oeuvre, and Frost’s proclivity to adapt Roentgen’s work, one can attribute this chair to Johann Gottlieb Frost with certainty. For more information on Frost and his activity, see Michael Sulzbacher’s essay in ibid., pp. 102-110.