A Louis XV Style Lacquer Commode After the design of BVRB

Object Description

A Louis XV Style Lacquer Vernis Martin Commode
After the design of BVRB

With its stunning onyx marble top, and constructed from bois noirci with vernis martin decorated panels in the manner of oriental lacquer, the commode of bombé form is profusely dressed with Rococo gilt bronze mounts, supported on elegant scrolled sabot feet, with acanthus espagnolettes to the corners, the front housing two sans-traverse drawers decorated with an oriental landscape within an ormolu tripartite frame of acanthus C-scrolls, rocaille motifs, and issuing foliate handles.
French, circa 1890

Object Literature

BVRB, the stamp used by Bernard van Risenburgh, is associated with some of the finest Louis XV era furniture ever produced, most of which is in museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Getty in Los Angeles. Among his many innovations is his use of lacquer panels on a commode supplied to the Queen of France in 1737 to Chateau de Fontainebleau.

The legacy of BVRB endured well into the 19th century, with some of the top Parisian workshops producing commodes inspired by his designs. Although lacking a stamp, the present Butchoff commode is similar to examples produced by the firms of Beurdeley and Linke.

Comparative literature:

Christopher Payne, Paris Furniture : The Luxury Market of the 19th Century. Saint-Rémy-en-l’Eau France: Éditions Monelle Hayot; 2018, pp. 151-152, illustrating lacquer examples by Beurdeley and Linke.

Object Condition

Excellent condition

Object Details