CHEST OF DRAWERS "TÊTE DE BÉLIER" Transitional style, Paris around 1860, stamped P. Sormani Paris (Paul Sormani, 1817-1877) on the corner moulding. After a model by Charles Topino. Amaranth, rosewood and violet wood inlaid in rectangular reserves and in veneer. Trapezoidal, laterally curved body on a cut-out frame and curved legs with sabots. Front with three drawers, the lower two without crosspieces. Bronze mounts in the form of rams' heads, palmettes, laurel wreaths, medallions and meander friezes. The apron with openwork mountings of playing bacchantes. Marble 'Brèche d'Alep' panel with moulded rim. 1 key. 116 × 54.5 × 90.5 cm. Good restored condition. Minor signs of use. Provenance: Private property in western Switzerland. A very similar model by Charles Topino, with the exception of the side doors and the bronze decoration in the lower part of the drawer, is illustrated in: Pierre Kjellberg, Le Mobilier Français du XVIII Siècle, Dictionnaire des ébenistes et des menuisiers, Les éditions de l'amateur, Paris 1989. p. 884, fig. A. Another, very similar model, with the exception of the side doors and the bronze decoration in the lower part of the drawer, is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum New York (inv. no. 69.9.3).