70 - BOOKCASE

BOOKCASE Made of blackened wood veneer and precious wood, decorated with marquetry featuring jasmine flowers in an antique style, foliage scrolls, birds, butterflies, and garlands around the edges. It opens via two glass-paned doors in the upper section and two hinged doors in the lower section, surmounted by a drawer. The sides are inlaid with framing bands. Louis XIV period. Gilded bronze ornamentation. Height: 206; Width: 101; Depth: 41 cm (Restored). Note. First appearing at the end of Louis XIV’s reign and particularly prized during the Regency, the jasmine motif refers to a refined style of floral marquetry set against a dark background. It is characterized by a profusion of star-shaped flowers inlaid with bone or light-colored wood, imitating jasmine blossoms amidst branches and leafy scrollwork. The composition generally centers on a basket, an urn, or an entablature beneath a canopy with lambrequins, featuring contrasting polychromy and a poetic bestiary. This ornamental vocabulary has its roots in the Italian influence of the Florence semi-precious stone workshops, adapted to cabinetmaking by the cabinetmakers working for the Court. The leading figure associated with this style of marquetry in the provinces remains Thomas Hache (1664–1747), founder of the famous dynasty of cabinetmakers from Grenoble.