Napoleon III Pietre Dure Bureau Plat by Gros

Form and function converge in this exceptional Louis XV-style bureau plat graced with eight elegant Sèvres Porcelain plaques. Framing these delightful, hand painted floral and fowl-themed plaques is a network of exquisite gilt bronze. Supporting the leather-topped table are graceful cabriole legs, a hallmark of fine Louis XV taste, that are crowned by gilt bronze caryatids and terminate in gilt bronze mounts. What makes this desk even more stunning is the inclusion of three concealed drawers that are opened only by the spring-loaded secret release mechanisms located underneath. The first porcelain mounted furnishings appeared sometime in the mid-18th century in the shops of the foremost Parisian art dealers. These furnishings successfully, and quite beautifully, married renowned Sèvres Porcelain with fine furniture to create a new segment of the decorative arts that appealed greatly to the aristocracy, especially women. The Duchesse de Mazarin, Comtesse du Barry, Marie-Antoinette and the Grand Duchess Maria...

This writing desk from the highly esteemed Thomas Chippendale is exceptionally rare and unique. The renowned cabinetmaker was the first craftsman to exhibit such a strong following that an entire style bears his name and not that of a monarch. He was famous for using the highest quality timbers, the finest quality mounts and for striving for perfection in every piece of furniture he created. Chippendale's clients included Catherine II of Russia, famed actor David Garrick...

This handsome library table is a remarkable example of the English furnishings that represented wealthy Victorian tastes. The piece is attributed to Holland & Sons, a firm regarded as one of the most important cabinetmakers of the era. Crafted of rich mahogany with gilt brass mounts and a tooled leather writing surface, this table characterizes the superb craftsmanship of Holland & Sons and exudes Victorian elegance. The well-known British cabinetmaking firm of Holland & Sons was considered the top of their class in their day. Found in 1803 by William Holland...

This superb mechanical desk by famed French ebeniste Alfred Emmanuel Louis Beurdeley is both an artistic and engineering achievement. A Parisian ca...

Superior craftsmanship and elegant bronze work characterize this tambour front roll top writing desk by François Linke, the most important French ébéniste of his time. Linke is celeb...

Among the most beautiful examples of hardstone artistry that have ever entered our collection, these important Grand Ducal pietre dure console tables are in a class all their own. Their powerful architectural elegance, impressive size and rarity make them two of the finest hardstone masterpieces ever created and quite possibly the greatest pair of pietre dure tables in existence. With their naturalistically rendered flowers and birds, these tabletop panels showcase the particularly fine quality craftsmanship of the Grand Ducal workshops in Florence during the first quarter of the 17th century. Grand Duke Ferdinando I de Medici, one of the most important personages in the annals of art history, established the Grand Ducal Workshop in 1588. The workshop specialized in the art of pietre dure developed from the ancient art of opus sectile, giving rise to the most luxurious and detailed examples of hardstone artistry ever produced. Its patrons were the Popes and Royals of Europe, and the quality of the objects produced in the workshop is without equal. Typically, because of the high level of workmanship the art form requires, pietre dure plaques were crafted in small sizes. The great majority of known examples of pietre dure are a fraction of the size of our grand tables. The combination of pietre dure and extensive use of other rare decorative hardstones such as lapis lazuli and pietra paesina or “ruin marble” meant that these tabletops were surely produced for a wealthy collector. The tables are further distinguished by their superbly carved bases by Andrea Brustolon, known as the “Michelangelo of wood.” Brustolon was a Venetian wood sculptor known for his exuberant and intricate Baroque furniture. His high Baroque style was influenced by his years studying in Rome, where he was exposed to the sculpture of Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Crafted in the early 18th century, these bases display Brusolon’s unmatched talent for both figural and foliate work, combining cupids, masks and oversized scrolling vines for a grand, ornate effect. Similar furnishings by Brustolon are held in museums worldwide, including the Victoria & Albert Museum, the National Museum of Scotland and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, while the Ca' Rezzonico Museum in Venice features an entire room dedicated to the sculptor. For approximately 150 years, these tables were part of the famed Stoneleigh Abbey collection owned by the Lord Leigh family. This renowned English country estate inspired Jane Austen to write Mansfield Park. Lord Leigh eventually sold the tables at Christie’s London in 1962, and the pair have stayed in the collection of the same Florentine family who purchased them from Christie's until we recently acquired them. Our tables are prominently pictured in the important Saul Levy book Il Mobile Veneziano del Settencento. The pietre dure plaques date circa 1625-1650. The decorative tops likely would have originally been sold with a pair of plain stone columns to display them, and Lord Leigh would have commissioned the custom bases from Brustolon circa 1714 when he added the impressive four-story fifteen-bay Baroque West Wing to Stoneleigh Abbey. A similar single Grand Ducal tabletop is in the United Kingdom’s National Trust Collection, and a smaller tabletop resides in Buckingham Palace. The flower and bird panels in our examples relate to the famous Badminton Cabinet...

We are delighted to offer for sale this stunning original Napoleon III French Empire desk with gilt bronze oversized fittings A very decorative and collectible desk in period lightly restored condition throughout. The desk comes complete with all original gilt bronze fixtures and fittings including two keys for the locks. It has four large drawers to the front, the left drawer is a very large single drawer with a safe drawer...

Excellent and rare French 19th century Napoleon III ebonized black lacquer Bureau plat or writing desk made in the Régence/Louis XV style made by Benjamin Gros/Paris, ca. 1855. Rais...

A stunning and very fine 19th century French Napoleon III bureau plat - writing desk. Masterfully constructed in ebonized or lacquered wood, w...

An outstanding Louis XV-style mahogany bureau plat after a model by Jacques B. Dubois, from the estate of Phyllis McGuire, the shaped leather-inset top above an elaborate frieze with...

This desk is by one of the finest makers in France during the fourth quarter of the 18th century under the reign of Louis XVI. Stamped M.CARLIN and JME on underside. Two commodes...

A Louis XV Style gilt-bronze mounted bureau plat by François Linke. The rectangular top inset with a green leather writing surface with gilt-tooled border, within a gilt-bronze su...