Object History
This bookcase is designed in the sculptural Louis XIV-XV style of the mid-18th century with overtones of Boulle, Gaudreaux and Cressent. A revival piece, dating to a century later, it is marked ‘BY’ for the Beurdeley dynasty of cabinetmakers. Stylistically, and from the construction, it can be attributed to Beurdeley’s production under the auspices of Alfred I, rather than his son, Alfred II, who favoured the later neoclassical Louis XVI style.
A cabinet of grand proportions, it is distinguished by the profusion of gilt-bronze mounts, especially the foliate clasps heading the corners and the large gilt-bronze medallions to the doors. These sculptural trophies are beautifully modelled and cast in gilt-bronze. Each medallion is suspended from a ribbon-bow. One represents agriculture, with a flower and fruit-filled pannier with garden tools, ears of wheat, and climbing vine. The other represents astrology with scientific instruments. Allegorical trophies such as these reflect the Sun King’s dominion over heaven and earth and were conceived to glorify the King by expressing France’s scientific superiority. Similar medallions were designed by the Slodtz brothers as gilt-bronze sculptural mounts for furniture, notably for a suite of bas armoires for the cabinet d’angle, Louis XIV’s room of collecting, at Versailles. The armoires are now in the dining-room at the Ministère de La Marine, Paris.
Provenance:
Southill Park, Bedfordshire, until sold in 2023.
Southill Park was begun in the 1720s for George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington (1663-1733). It passed down in the Byng family until it was sold in 1795 to Samuel Whitbread (1720–1796), the brewer and founder of Whitbreads. The house passed to his descendants and remains in the family.
