19th Century, French Mahogany Coffee Table By Escalier De Cristal

19th Century, French mahogany coffee table by Escalier de Cristal
Paris, second half of the 19th century

The coffee table was made by the famous Parisian manufactory Escalier de Cristal towards the end of the 19th century.
Escalier de Cristal (1804-1923) is an old manufactory created in Paris by Marie Desarnaud, born Marie Jeanne Rosalie Charpentier, in 1804. Famous under the Restoration period, it is the first commercial house of its time to propose pendulums, candelabra, ornamental vases that associate the ground crystal and the gilt bronze.
The quality of his creations was unanimously recognized at the 1819 exhibition of French industry products where he obtained the gold medal with the bathroom table of the Duchess of Berry.
Only towards the end of the reign of Louis Philippe the shop extends its activity to the furniture trade and begins to manufacture cabinet making around 1870 and offering for sale items of great luxury both original and in the style of the 18th century.
The coffee table is made of mahogany wood, in the style of Louis XV. It has a table top with a wavy perimeter. On one side there is a drawer and symmetrically has a removable top. The arched legs are connected in a low position by another small floor under which there is the stamping of the manufactory “Escalier de Cristal Paris”. The cabinet is embellished with some details in gilded bronze: a frame runs around the surfaces of the support and four leads decorate the feet with bronzes chiselled with foliate motif.
The coffee table fully represents the characteristics of the illustrious manufacture: small in size, has a graceful and elegant line and an accurate manufacturing technique.
It has been designed to be used as a center table, perfect to be placed between sofas and armchairs or leaning against a wall of a living room, a study or an entrance. Its refined line makes it suitable both in an environment with antique furnishings and modern taste.