A Napoleon III Ebonised Parquetry Secretaire en Pente

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Object Description

A Napoleon III Gilt-Bronze Mounted and Brass Inlaid Ebonised Parquetry Secretaire en Pente by Alphonse Tahan,

Engraved to the lock plate ‘TAHAN / Fr DE L’EMPEREUR’

The top with a three-quarter gallery above a fall front opening to reveal a fitted interior including three short drawers and a tooled leather writing surface, the fall-front with a brass cartouche engraved with a count’s crest with the motto ‘NISI DOMINUS CUSTODIERIT’.

France, circa 1875.

Object History

Alphonse Tahan (1830 -1880) was the official ébéniste de l’Empereur, (master cabinetmaker), to Emperor Napoleon III and his wife the Empress Eugenie.

The firm was based in Paris at 30 Rue de La Paix from 1849 and subsequently from 1878 at Boulevard des Italiens.

Tahan participated in various international exhibitions of the period, including a silver medal in 1849, and 1852 and a gold medal in Paris in 1867.

The company declined after the fall of the second Empire and ceased production and closed in 1882.

Object Literature

Ledoux-Lebard, Denise ‘Les Ebenistes du XIX Siecle’, Editions de l’Amateur (Paris), 1984 pps 593-8.

Object Condition

This striking writing des is in good original unrestored condition, with wear and marks as expected by age and use. Structrally sound and very decorative.

Object Details

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By appointment only.

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Audley House, 3 The Grange
Albion Street, Brighton
West Sussex BN42 4EN

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