Pair of Satinwood Demilune Cabinets Commodes, Early 20th Century

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Pair of Satinwood Demilune Cabinets Commodes, Early 20th Century

About the Item

This is a gorgeous pair of George III style satinwood demilune commodes with fruitwood inlaid marquetry decoration, early 20th century in date. Each chest has striking Santos rosewood crossbanding with a decorative shell rosette within a fan medallion to the top, as well as beautiful inlays of garlands of flowers, ribbons and neoclassical urns. Each commode has a useful capacious drawer and each door opens to reveal a large cupboard with a central shelf. Condition: In excellent condition having been beautifully restored in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation. Dimensions in cm: Height 91 x width 132 x depth 56. Dimensions in inches: Height 3 feet x width 4 feet, 4 inches x depth 1 foot, 10 inches. Satinwood is a hard and durable wood with a satinlike sheen, much used in cabinetmaking, especially in marquetry. It comes from two tropical trees of the family Rutaceae (rue family). East Indian or Ceylon satinwood is the yellowish or dark-brown heartwood of Chloroxylon swietenia. The lustrous, fine-grained, usually figured wood is used for furniture, cabinetwork, veneers, and backs of brushes. West Indian satinwood, sometimes called yellow wood, is considered superior. It is the golden yellow, lustrous, even-grained wood found in the Florida Keys and the West Indies. It has long been valued for furniture. It is also used for musical instruments, veneers and other purposes. Satinwood is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Sapindales, family Rutaceae. Marquetry is decorative artistry where pieces of material (such as wood, mother-of-pearl, pewter, brass silver or shell) of different colours are inserted into surface wood veneer to form intricate patterns such as scrolls or flowers. The technique of veneered marquetry had its inspiration in 16th century Florence. Marquetry elaborated upon Florentine techniques of inlaying solid marble slabs with designs formed of fitted marbles, jaspers and semi-precious stones. This work, called opere di commessi, has medieval parallels in Central Italian "Cosmati"-work of inlaid marble floors, altars and columns. The technique is known in English as Pietra Dura, for the "hardstones" used: onyx, jasper, cornelian, lapis lazuli and colored marbles. In Florence, the Chapel of the Medici at San Lorenzo is completely covered in a colored marble facing using this demanding jig-sawn technique. Techniques of wood marquetry were developed in Antwerp and other Flemish centers of luxury cabinet-making during the early 16th century. The Craft was imported full-blown to France after the mid-17th century, to create furniture of unprecedented luxury being made at the royal manufactory of the Gobelins, charged with providing furnishings to decorate Versailles and the other royal residences of Louis XIV. Early masters of French marquetry were the Fleming Pierre Golle and his son-in-law, André-Charles Boulle, who founded a dynasty of royal and Parisian cabinetmakers (ébénistes) and gave his name to a technique of marquetry employing shell and brass with pewter in arabesque or intricately foliate designs. Rosewood is a rich warm reddish brown wood that has a distinct grain with dark brown and black outlining. One variety of Rosewood can vary significantly from another even though it is of the same species. These Rosewoods, native of India, South East Asia and Brazil, were dense and awkward to work with. It was renowned for quickly bluntening cutting tools and visibly darkening in colour when over prepared. The Brazilian species of rosewood was by far the most beautifully figured and therefore it became the most sought after and rare. This was the wood of choice for the great box makers, David and Thomas Edwards who used it to veneer some of their finest pieces.

Dimensions:
Height: 35.83 in (91 cm)Width: 51.97 in (132 cm)Depth: 22.05 in (56 cm)
Sold As:
Set of 2
Place of Origin:
England
Period:
1910-1919
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1910
Condition:
Seller Location:
London, GB
Reference Number:
Seller: 070371stDibs: LU95065099543