LOUIS XV PERIOD SLOPING DESK Stamped by Jacques Dubois In Chinese lacquer and European varnish, with polychrome decoration on all sides of birds among foliage, the curved sides with figures in palace architecture, ornamentation in chased and gilded bronze, the front opening with a flap revealing a red varnish interior with four drawers and two compartments around a central sliding flap, the waist opening with two drawers, the curved legs embellished with bronze sabots, stamped I.DUBOIS and the JME hallmark under the left crosspiece; minor accidents and missing parts, the handles and bronze apron added. H. 93 cm (36 ½ in.) l. 85 cm (33 ½ in.) P. 55 cm (21 ½ in.) Jacques Dubois, master in 1742 Provenance : Former collection of the Marquise de L ; Sale in Paris, Me Ader, 14 March 1956, lot 102 ; Sale in Paris, mainly from the collections of Ricardo Espirito Santo, Anténor Patino, Roger Peyrefitte and the estate of the Marquis d'Argenson, Me Ader-Picard-Tajan, 14 June 1977, lot 143 ; Sale in Paris, Me Ader-Picard-Tajan, 23 February 1978, lot 108; Lempertz Cologne sale, 18-19 May 2007, lot 620 (€ 97 850); Acquired during the latter; Then by descent to the current owner. Bibliography: P. Kjellberg, Le Mobilier Français du XVIIIe siècle, Paris, 1989, p. 269, fig. G (reproduced). Comparative bibliography: P. Kjellberg, Le Meuble Français et européen du Moyen Age a nos jours, Les Editions de l'Amateur, Paris, 1991, p. 243, fig. 285. A. Pradère, Les Ebénistes Français de Louis XIV à la Révolution, Chêne, Paris, 1989, p. 170, fig. 148. A Louis XV gilt-bronze mounted, Chinese lacquer and japanned bureau de pente, stamped by Jacques Dubois This rare bureau de pente (sloping desk) is a precious testimony to the eighteenth-century infatuation with the Orient in France's decorative arts. From the 17th century onwards, Europe's fascination with the Far East led to the importation of lacquerware, which was highly prized by the aristocracy and the haberdashery trade. The latter adapted chests, screens and objects to bring them up to date. Jacques Dubois created furniture incorporating lacquers from China and Japan, as well as "Chinese-style" panels in imitation of Asian lacquers. The richness and quality of the relief decoration, as well as the exceptional finesse of the bronzes adorning our desk, suggest that the merchant who commissioned this piece called on the services not only of Dubois, but also of a highly talented varnisher. Joseph Huitre, a talented varnisher, is known to have supplied Dubois with lacquer and varnished panels, and to have worked actively for the merchant-merchants Poirier, Duvaux, Lebrun and Machart. Among them, Machart is known to have commissioned lacquer furniture for Dubois, incorporating panels by Huitre. We can therefore suggest that our copy is the result of this collaboration. Dubois's after-death inventory shows that his workshop had a considerable number of pieces in lacquer from China or Japan, described as follows: "un bureau en lac de Chine" and "un petit secrétaire en lac de Japon", each estimated at 200L. His inventory also shows that Dubois kept a considerable stock of ormolu ornaments: "432 pounds of bronze models, 1080L". The rich, finely jagged ormolu ornamentation that adorns our desk is characteristic of Dubois' work and can be found in some of the most precious desks made by this famous cabinetmaker, such as : * The Japanese lacquer desk (see fig. 1) from the former Keck collection (then sold at Christie's Paris on 7 November 2012, lot 204); * The Japanese lacquer and European varnish desk (see fig. 2), stamped Dubois and delivered for the Marquise de Pompadour in 1755 at the Château de Choisy (former collection of Baroness Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza, Christie's London sale, 13 November 2019, lot 110); * The Chinese lacquer and European varnish lady's desk (see fig. 3) from the former Strathos collection, then Mr Djahanguir Riahi (Christie's New York sale, 2 November 2000, lot 51). It is interesting to note that the copy delivered to Madame de Pompadour at Choisy, like the copy in the Dutasta collection (Paris sale, 3-4 June 1926, lot 157), shares with our piece an interior in red varnish, creating a striking chromatic contrast with the exterior in oriental lacquer.