Object Description
A thoroughly delightful pair of antique French Empire mahogany, ormolu and marble-topped bedside cabinets, circa 1830 in date.
They are freestanding, finished on all four sides and each features a shaped rectangular Carrara marble top with three-quarter brass galleries above three drawers decorated with entrelac-patterned ormolu ovals. They are raised on elegant turned and reeded legs.
Add an elegant touch to your home with these delightful bedside chests.
Condition:
In really excellent condition having been beautifully cleaned, polished and waxed in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation.
Dimensions in cm:
Height 72 cm x Width 39 cm x Depth 29 cm
Dimensions in inches:
Height 2 foot, 4 inches x Width 1 foot, 3 inches x Depth 11 inches
Carrara marble
is a type of white or blue-grey marble popular for use in sculpture and building decor. It is quarried at the city of Carrara in the province of Massa-Carrara (Tuscany, Italy).
Carrara marble has been used since the time of Ancient Rome; the Pantheon and Trajan’s Column in Rome are constructed of it. Many sculptures of the Renaissance, such as Michelangelo’s David, were carved from Carrara marble. For Michelangelo at least, Carrara marble was valued above all other stone, except perhaps that of his own quarry in Pietrasanta. The Marble Arch in London and the Duomo di Siena are also made from this stone, as are the interiors of Manila Cathedral, the cold-white marbles of the Sheikh Zayed Mosque and the campus of Harvard Medical School.
Ormolu – Gilt Bronze
(from French ‘or moulu’, signifying ground or pounded gold) It is an 18th-century English term for applying finely ground, high-carat gold in a mercury amalgam to an object of bronze. The mercury is driven off in a kiln, leaving behind a gold-coloured veneer known as ‘gilt bronze’.
The manufacture of true ormolu employs a process known as mercury-gilding or fire-gilding, in which a solution of nitrate of mercury is applied to a piece of copper, brass, or bronze, followed by the application of an amalgam of gold and mercury. The item was then exposed to extreme heat until the mercury burned off and the gold remained, adhering to the metal object.
After around 1830, because legislation had outlawed the use of mercury, other techniques were used instead. Electroplating is the most common modern technique. Ormolu techniques are essentially the same as those used on silver, to produce silver-gilt.
Our reference: A5141