Pair of children's armchairs attributed to G.Jacob circa 1795

Extremely rare pair of small children's armchairs in solid mahogany.
Upturned backrest model with roll-up armrests on the sides and armrest supports in the shape of baluster barrels.
Spindle legs decorated with lambrequins connected to the crosspieces by rosette dice at the front; saber feet at the rear.

Traditional natural horsehair trim and straps; covered with a toile de Jouy “The Muse and the Lion”.

Stenciled mark “956” on the reverse of a crosspiece, probably coming from the imperial storage room.

Very good state of conservation.

Work attributable to Georges Jacob, Paris Directoire period around 1795.

Dimensions:

Height: 70 cm; Width: 43.5cm; Depth: 40 cm; Seat height: 32 cm

Our opinion :

Our rare pair of children's armchairs is characteristic of the productions that Georges Jacob and his children (Jacob Frères) produced under the Directory (1795-1799).
The shape of the seats with their upturned backs and their armrests rolled up on the exteriors as well as the nature of the decor with spindle legs with lambrequins, strigils and baluster shafts for the armrest supports are found on the numerous deliveries of the Jacob family for furniture storage.
The virile and powerful style is inspired by the military world, it corresponds to the period of the Italian and Egyptian campaigns.
Solidity was essential at this time with solid mahogany and often leather for the trim.
Such seats were mainly delivered for the palaces where Bonaparte received the elite of his army such as the Tuileries or even Fontainebleau.
They contrast with the more refined and feminine decors chosen by Joséphine, notably for the palaces of St Cloud or Meudon.
Generally in these palaces there is no room for children, which makes this type of seat extremely rare.
Even if we do not know with certainty the exact provenance due to the absence of a label, the typology of the stencil mark is indeed that of the imperial furniture storage, and the number "956" indicates to us that the inventory of the building is very important, with at least a thousand pieces.
The absence of stamps is recurrent from the fall of the corporations in 1792 and this absence is even more reinforced by Georges Jacob who encounters big problems during the revolution, to the point of being imprisoned in 1794.
The cabinetmaker only owed his salvation to the intervention of the painter Jacques-Louis David and his offer to get to work for free for the new regime.
A large part of his last production in the years 1792-1796 is known only from the archives of the furniture store, because his stamp is now absent.
His two children united under the banner “Jacob brothers” will see the return to favor of the company and will take over their father’s models, which also allows us to attribute certain models not stamped by Georges Jacob.