Lot Essay
This work illustrates the decisive role played by the German cabinetmaker David Roentgen (1743-1807) in developing and perfecting writing tables. This table follows on from the first Rococo examples he made in Neuwied, then English-inspired ones with clog legs, as well as those in the Transition style, decorated with rich geometric marquetry and bone inlays. Ours corresponds to the fourth phase in the development of Roentgen tables, between 1775 and 1780, with French neoclassical lines and elegant mahogany veneers, characteristic of the reign of Louis XVI.
During this period, David Roentgen left Germany for France, probably at the invitation of Charles, Duke of Lorraine (1712-1780), Governor of the Austrian Netherlands, brother of Emperor Francis I, but also husband of Marie-Thérèse and uncle of Marie-Antoinette. In Paris, Roentgen made a number of pieces of furniture for the French Crown, which granted him the title of cabinetmaker to the King and Queen in 1779. This status opened the doors to all the European courts, as well as the châteaux of the Electors of Hesse and Saxony, the Dukes of Württemberg and the Marquis of Baden. A year later, he was awarded the title of master cabinetmaker in Paris and founded a workshop there in 1781, following on from his father's workshop in Germany, which he had managed since 1772.
David Roentgen used the model of our writing table in several variants, perfecting its mechanisms and multiplying its uses: a comparable pair of mechanical game tables was sold at Christie's in London on 19 May 2021, lot 50, while an architect's table, ‘à la Tronchin’, was sold at Christie's in Paris on 4 November 2015, lot 514.
During this period, David Roentgen left Germany for France, probably at the invitation of Charles, Duke of Lorraine (1712-1780), Governor of the Austrian Netherlands, brother of Emperor Francis I, but also husband of Marie-Thérèse and uncle of Marie-Antoinette. In Paris, Roentgen made a number of pieces of furniture for the French Crown, which granted him the title of cabinetmaker to the King and Queen in 1779. This status opened the doors to all the European courts, as well as the châteaux of the Electors of Hesse and Saxony, the Dukes of Württemberg and the Marquis of Baden. A year later, he was awarded the title of master cabinetmaker in Paris and founded a workshop there in 1781, following on from his father's workshop in Germany, which he had managed since 1772.
David Roentgen used the model of our writing table in several variants, perfecting its mechanisms and multiplying its uses: a comparable pair of mechanical game tables was sold at Christie's in London on 19 May 2021, lot 50, while an architect's table, ‘à la Tronchin’, was sold at Christie's in Paris on 4 November 2015, lot 514.