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A very beautiful Louis XV oak-lined black and gold Chinese lacquer commode attributed to Mathieu Criaerd, the shaped rectangular serpentine-fronted moulded brèche violette marble top above a bombé front with two drawers decorated overall with Chinoiserie scenes of figures, pagodas and trees within a hilly and river landscape, each drawer with rocaille foliate cast handles and mounted with a rocaille scrolling foliate border, above a shaped apron centred by a pierced cartouche flanked by floral sprays, the sides decorated conformingly, the angles with pierced rocaille and foliate mounts on cabriole legs terminating in foliate sabots
Paris, date circa 1745
Height 87.5 cm, width 132 cm, depth 56.5 cm.
Literature: Alexandre Pradère, “French Furniture Makers”, 1989, p. 222, pl. 221, illustrating a Chinese lacquer commode by Mathieu Criaerd decorated with exotic birds, flora and fauna of very similar overall design and comparable gilt bronze mounts. Pierre Kjellberg, “Le Mobilier Français du XVIIIe Siècle”, 1998, pp. 215, 216, pl. A and 217, pl. C, illustrating three Criaerd Chinese lacquer commodes of similar design.
The attribution to Mathieu Criaerd (1689-1776) is based on the similarity with other pieces bearing his stamp; many of these were likewise decorated with sumptuous Chinese lacquer work and comparable gilt bronze mounts. During the early part of his career Criaerd specialized in the production of commodes and other pieces such as encoignures decorated with Chinese and Coromandel lacquer as well as vernis Martin. In addition to the above examples one can also cite a commode, probably either by Mathieu Criaerd or Pierre-Harry Mewesen (maître 1766) in the Wrightsman Collection, Metropolitan Museum, New York, which is of very similar overall design, having comparable rocaille mounts and decorated with Chinese style lacquer and vernis Martin (illustrated in F. J. B. Watson, “The Wrightsman Collection”, 1966, vol. I, p. 167, no. 98). Other similar lacquer commodes by Criaerd include one in the Demarsy sale sold at Galerie Charpentier, Paris, 17th December 1937, lot 100, another sold by the same auction house 17th March, 1956, lot 126 and a third once owned by the Parisian dealer René Weiller in 1961, (illustrated in “The Connoisseur”, June 1961, p. 280).
Mathieu Criaerd was the most distinguished member of a large family of Parisian ébénistes; by 1723 he had set up business in rue Saint-Nicolas and then moved to rue Traversière in 1732. It was not until 1738 at the age of 49 that he was received as a Parisian maître. During the 1740’s he worked for the marchand-mercier Thomas-Joachim Hébert, through whom he supplied an encoignure and matching commode to the king’s mistress, Mlle de Mailly at Choisy. Other similar commissions included a kingwood commode supplied by Hébert in 1748 to the cabinet of the Dauphin at Versailles, where it still remains. Criaerd also supplied Antoine-Robert Gaudreaus and between 1755-65 worked for Gilles Joubert who had succeeded Hébert and Gaudreaus as suppliers to the Garde-Meuble Royal. Among more important deliveries to Joubert, in 1754 Criaerd supplied a tulipwood
commode for Château de la Muette as well as a night table supplied in 1755 for Mme de Pompadour at Choisy (Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris). Other deliveries included a small encoignure of 1756 for the Dauphin at Compiègne (Musée de Saumur) and in 1768 a small writing table for the Comptroller General. As an indication of Criaerd’s high standing, he is known to have supplied a number of pieces to J. -F. Oeben, the great ébéniste du Roi.
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