Offered by Franck Baptiste Paris
REQUEST INFORMATION
A rare and important console table in giltwood linden.
The half-moon shape rests on four tapered legs imitating quivers; they are banded, reeded with asparagus motifs, and terminate in finials at the top.
The aprons are joined by rosette-shaped blocks; they are recessed with reserves bordered by beaded friezes and pierced with interlacing patterns centered with sunflowers.
Large garlands of finely carved laurel leaves cascade in festoons beneath the stretchers and are joined by a wide knot in the center.
The black Belgian marble top, with a Greek key pattern, follows the contours of the console.
In very good condition, with original gilding.
Provençal work from the Louis XVI period, circa 1780-1800, probably by the Nîmes cabinetmaker Pierre Pillot.
Dimensions:
Width: 139 cm; Height: 89 cm; Depth: 63 cm
Our opinion:
The richness and exuberance of the carving on this console table are characteristic of workshops in southern France.
The openwork and finely detailed friezes demonstrate a rare technical virtuosity; this element, as well as the depth of the carving of the laurel garlands, is quite exceptional.
This virtuosity, the nature of the decoration (sunflowers and laurels), the pure neoclassical form, and the characteristics of the construction point to a work by the cabinetmaker Pierre Pillot, who was active in Nîmes from approximately 1780 to 1820. This maker is best known for his square-section tapered legs used after 1790, but early production includes pieces in the transitional style and even in the Louis XV style with cabriole or spindle legs.
Several of these stamped commodes and consoles, with their finely carved decoration of identical rosettes, sunflowers, and garlands, were formerly in our collection.
