WR 160
A Mahogany Console France circa 1815, attributed to Charles-Joseph Lemarchand (1758-1826), the upper shelf supported by two winged terms with finely detailed female heads and ebonised Pompeian neo-classical motifs beneath, each leg ending in a lion’s paw foot, the finely grained mahogany has many contrasting ebonised details reflected in the antique mirror plate behind, 76cm wide, 94cm high £4,000 - £6,000
$6,400 - $9,500 €5,600 - €8,300
The Lemarchand dynasty is one of the greatest in French furniture history. Its fame rests on the oeuvre of two men; the father CharlesJoseph, and his son Louis-Edouard. Their business flourished for over 60 years between 1791 and 1852 but their apotheosis came when Louis-Edouard was commissioned to provide Napoleon’s tomb for Les Invalides. Charles-Joseph Lemarchand was born in Dieppe in 1759 the son of the postmaster. He had one brother and three sisters one of which married the ebeniste P. Roussel. The next mention of Charles is in 1789 when he became a maitre on the eve of the Revolution. Perhaps he served his apprenticeship with Roussel, unfortunately history does not relate. His
business flourished and substantial wealth was recorded at the time of his marriage. He had two sons emil and Louis-Edouard who joined his fathers business in 1815. His supply of pieces to the various Gardemeuble of the period was fitful. He received regular commissions before the revolution and managed to survive both the Revolution and the Terror but during the Empire he was ignored, though things improved after the restoration and he became a patented supplier. Despite the vicissitudes of Garde-meuble commissioning his business seems to have enjoyed a stability of success so seldom found with ebenistes of the period. He appears to have never gone bankrupt which is almost unheard of. He was clearly as good a business man as he was a cabinetmaker and one of his ploys has come down to us. He liked on occasion to give the impression that he was going to retire and he offered his entire stock or substantial parts of it to various clients and discounted prices. He did finally retire and cede his business to his son shortly before his death, which was in 1826 at the good age for the time of 66. Louis-Edouard Lemarchand was born in 1795 and was sent off at the age of 15 to study architecture. This was seen as a useful tool for furniture construction techniques. However he was enticed by the
military life and he deserted his studies to sign up for the military academy of Saint Cyr in 1813. He left in order to fight in the battle of Ligny where he did well and was decorated on the battlefield itself. Incidentally he did not actually receive his medal until the reign of Louis-Philippe. Following Waterloo he was released from the army with the rank of sub-lieutenant of the 29th light. He joined the family business having experienced much and as an ardent supporter of Napoleon at the tender age of 20. Despite his youth he immediately played an active role and soon his father ceded complete control to him, indeed it is from this period that the workshops achieved their greatest output. He managed to negotiate for Lemarchand to be patented suppliers to the Restoration Garde-meuble. He supplied the kings Charles x and Louis-Philippe. In 1830 he obtained the title of official ebeniste to the duc de d’Orleans. He passed the business on as a successful going concern in 1852 but lived in good health until 1872. The Lemarchand stamp was used throughout the period of both father and son and was acknowledged as an sign of quality and finesse. Though not renowned for innovation they were famous for the use of exotic woods and the confident application of contemporary style. The reputation rests on fine carving, good design and outstanding cabinetmaking. WR 161
A Set of Four Polished Steel Fire Tools England circa 1880, aesthetic movement, comprising a pair of tongs, a shovel, a fork and a log hook, 19cm wide, 115cm high £600 - £800
161
80
M A L L E T T LONDON • NEW YORK
$1,000 - $1,300 €800 - €1,100