Canabas Stamped Mahogany Wine Cooler

Mahogany and mahogany veneer cooler resting on four legs mounted on slightly arched castors joined together by two spacer trays. The upper part is composed of two slots intended to receive two silver metal coolers, two silver metal compartments also and a part in white marble set in the tray. One of the sides reveals a cutlery drawer. The cooler is adorned with an ornamentation of gilded bronzes composed of wheeled foot shoes and a pull button. Stamped Canabas Transition Period Usual restorations H. 76.5 x W. 59.5 x D. 46 cm The Louvre museum today keeps two coffee tables of the same model as ours. Another model can be seen at the Nissim de Camondo museum. Pierre Kjellberg also reproduced a model very close to ours in his book “Le Mobilier français du XVIIIe siècle. Canabas was born in Germany, where his family originated. But it was in Paris that he launched his career, initially subcontracting for great cabinetmakers like Migeon, Madame de Pompadour's favourite, or the king's cabinetmaker, Jean-François Oeben. He was received master in 1766, and had a prosperous career, which survived the Revolution, since he still produced furniture under the Directory. The table cooler occupies an interesting place in the production of Canabas. It testifies on the one hand to his great dexterity in creating small pieces of furniture which have nothing dry in the general look, despite an absence of ornamentation and minimal mouldings. The table-refreshment fits above all into a style of small utilitarian furniture that Canabas is particularly fond of, and whose production is accelerating with the appearance of the dining room and suppers with reduced domesticity. These small pieces of furniture, designed for specific uses, are cleverly crafted and compensate for the apparent simplicity of their lines with great practicality and the fine quality of mahogany, a precious and luxurious wood highly prized by the elite.