Empire Jacob -brothers Rue Meslée Empire

Empire style Exceptional Curule armchair in solid mahogany. Notice to collectors: this magnificent armchair is deceptive, one could believe that it is from the period, if that were the case, the Armchair would currently cost four times the price I am asking today, and we probably couldn't use it for fear of damaging it. It is in perfect condition, to be placed in your collection! Difficult to say that it is not of the period because of its quality, its nervousness. I highly recommend it. The rectangular “board” back decorated with two small volute consoles in the lower part, the armrests supported by cornucopias topped with balls, the X-shaped base carved in the upper part. According to Jacob -Frères rue Meslée. (Made in the middle of the 20th century, of very very high quality, Parisian manufacturing, from a great cabinetmaker from the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, without a doubt,) Directoire style. Dimensions: H: 95cm - D 47 cm - L: 66cm Provenance: Private collection, remained in the same family, by descent until today. This seat is directly inspired in its general form by the “sella curulis” of ancient Rome reserved for magistrates and high dignitaries, hence its name “curule”. It is also part of the craze for Antiquity at the end of the 18th century, sparked by the discoveries of the sites of Herculaneum and Pompeii, illustrated in France, among others, by the writings of the Count of Caylus without forgetting the Bonaparte's Egyptian campaign story reported by Baron Vivant Denon in "La Basse et la Haute ... Read more ... Guinée" published in 1802. This armchair was made after a drawing by Charles Percier preserved in a private collection, reproduced opposite. It perfectly illustrates the “antique” phase in the production of Georges Jacob (1739-1814) and subsequently that of his sons, George II and François-Honré-Georges Jacob, under the name Jacob-Frères as evidenced by this armchair that we present. One of these armchairs is reproduced in “Léon de Groër, Les Arts Décoratifs from 1790 to 1850, Friborg 1985, Office du livre Ed., p. 23,Fig. 30. Finally, a comparable armchair, although not stamped, is reproduced in G. Janneau, Les Seats, Paris, 1967, p. 171, fig. 324. - An identical model is kept at the Marmottan Museum and reproduced in “the Empire, Marmottan Museum” collective work, ABC Décor Special issue July 1977, p. 49. - An identical pair with ivory balls and attributed to G. Jacob was in the Christian Dior collection, Paris sale November 6, 2014 n° 439 adj €95,000 - An identical pair in the former Grognot-Joinel collection, reproduced in “The siege in France from the Middle Ages to the present day” Pierre Devinoy, Paris 1948, p. 257. Bibliography: - in JP Samoyault, Le Mobilier Français Consulat et Empire, Paris 2009, p.27 figs. 25-26. - Claude Frégnac, The cabinetmakers of the French 18th century, Hachette, Paris, 1963, p. 240 fig. 1 - Denise Ledoux-Lebard, The cabinetmakers of the 19th century. 1795-1889, Les éditions de l'amateur, Paris, 1984, pp. 283, 331 and 369. - Michel Beurdeley, Jacob and his time, Editions Monelle Hayot, Saint Rémy en l'Eau, 2002, p. 15. ARMCHAIR «CURULES FORMING IN MAHOGANY ONE STAMPED JACOB -FRERES RUE MESLEE AND THE OTHER ATTRIBUTED DIRECTOIRE PERIOD, CIRCA 1795 Condition report: (small tiny crack at the intersection of the 2 legs at the back, small offset at the junction of the boards of the file, Sold as is.