Ref. 1986

H.-L. Wassmus

Cabinet-maker (1817-1884)

Flat Desk

France
Circa 1860

Rosewood, Gilded bronze

Height : 73,5 cm (28,9 in.) ; Length : 118,5 cm (46,6 in.) ; Depth: 64 cm (25,2 in.)

Beautiful Louis XV style desk in rosewood veneer and chiseled and gilded bronze. It is decorated on all sides, in cartouches circled by a frieze of eggs and foliage, with a marquetry of diamonds. Covered with a top sheathed with black leather and surrounded by a mold, it opens on one side with three drawers. The whole rest on four cabriole legs decorated at the corner with ram’s heads and ending with four leafy hooves.

biography

The Wassmus were a family of cabinet-makers active in Paris from around 1815 to 1868, suppliers to the Imperial Garde-Meuble under the Second Empire, specializing in the creation of prestigious marquetry furniture. Under the company name Wassmus brothers first operated Jean-Henri-Chrétien (1784-1858) and his brother Jean-Henri-Christophe (1786/1864) then their sons, including Henri-Léonard (1817-1884), who created and designed most of the furniture coming out of the workshop. Working as a family, it is difficult to precisely attribute the works by author. They specialized in the manufacture of very high-quality furniture, particularly in the Boulle, Louis XV, Louis XVI and Napoleon III styles. The Louis XVI-style chests of drawers furnishing the Hôtel de Marigny in Paris are by Henri-Léonard Wassmus ; they come from the Prince Imperial’s bedroom at the Élysée Palace. In 1844, they were awarded a silver medal at the Exposition des Produits de l’Industrie, and exhibited at the Universal Exhibitions in Paris in 1855 and 1867.