LOUIS XV STYLE BUREAU PLAT DIT "DE L'ABBÉ TERRAY" Based on a model by Nicolas Pierre Severin Satinwood veneer, chased and gilded bronze ornamentation, three drawers on the belt, curved legs surmounted by shells and foliage. H.:79 cm (31 in.) l.:201 cm (79 ¼ in.) P.:98 cm (38 ½ in.) Comparative bibliography: C. Mestdagh, L'Ameublement d'Art Français 1850-1900, Les Éditions de l'Amateur, Paris, 57, 283 and 284. C. Payne, Paris, La Quintessence du Meuble au XIXe siècle, Éditions Monelle Hayot, 2018, p.148. A Louis XV style gilt-bronze mounted and satinwood bureau plat, after the model by Nicolas Pierre Severin Our elegant flat desk, with its monumental proportions, is a replica of the famous Abbé Terray desk, kept at the Musée du Louvre since 1924 (inv. OA 7805). The original was made around 1760 for Louis XV's last Controller General of Finances, and is stamped by Nicolas Pierre Severin, Master in 1757. Better known for his work as a restorer, some authors have speculated that he acted as restorer and that the desk is the work of Joseph Baumhauer. This model enjoyed great success in the 19th century, as evidenced by the stamped examples produced by the leading cabinetmakers of the day, including Henri Dasson, Alfred Beurdeley, Paul Sormani and Gervais Durand. Rare on the market, among the latest examples to come up for sale in recent years: - Christie's Paris, April 23, 2013, lot 575 (signed Sormani and dated 1881) ; - Sotheby's New York, April 22, 2010, lot 128 (signed Beurdeley); - Sotheby's New York, April 14, 2016, lot 614 (signed E. Laurent Rue Charonne). It should be noted that all these copies are smaller than ours, which is the same size as the original copy in the Louvre.