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Commode

ca. 1786
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 540
A set of three commodes, one larger one, and a pair of smaller, matching ones, were commissioned from Riesener in 1786 for the use of Marie Joséphine of Savoy, Comtesse de Provence at Montreuil. The description and dimensions given in Riesener’s mémoire or bill are very similar to this commode which would have been one of the two smaller pieces. Especially, the use of the concave frieze and the design of the gilt-bronze mounts make it very likely that this commode was one of the three supplied to the Comtesse de Provence. However, since no special stamp was used for the Garde Meuble of the Comtesse de Provence, this commode can only be linked to her on the basis of the description.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Commode
  • Maker: Jean Henri Riesener (French, Gladbeck, North Rhine-Westphalia 1734–1806 Paris)
  • Date: ca. 1786
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Oak, veneered with mahogany, gilt-bronze mounts, marble top
  • Dimensions: 34 x 36 1/2 x 17 3/4 in. (86.4 x 92.7 x 45.1 cm)
  • Classification: Woodwork-Furniture
  • Credit Line: The Jack and Belle Linsky Collection, 1982
  • Object Number: 1982.60.51
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

More Artwork

More Artwork
Drop-front secretary (Secrétaire en armoire), Jean Henri Riesener French, Oak veneered with ebony and 17th-century Japanese lacquer; interiors veneered with tulipwood, amaranth, holly, and ebonized holly; gilt-bronze mounts; marble top; velvet (not original), French, Paris
Drop-front secretary (Secrétaire en armoire)
Jean Henri Riesener
1783
Armor of Infante Luis, Prince of Asturias (1707–1724), Jean Drouart French, Steel, gold, brass, silk, cotton, metallic yarn, paper, French, Paris
Armor of Infante Luis, Prince of Asturias (1707–1724)
Armorer Signature probably refers to Jean Drouart
dated 1712
Commode à vantaux, David Roentgen German, Oak, pine, walnut, mahogany, and cherry veneered with hornbeam (partially stained), tulipwood, walnut, holly and maple (both partially stained), boxwood, mahogany, and other woods; red brocatelle marble; gilt bronze; iron, steel, and brass, German, Neuwied am Rhein
Commode à vantaux
Multiple artists/makers
ca. 1775–79 with later alterations
Snuffbox, Hard-paste porcelain, gold, German
Snuffbox
German
ca. 1770
Side table (commode servante or commode desserte), Jean Henri Riesener French, Oak, pine, mahogany, and mahogany veneer; gilt-bronze mounts; Carrara marble top and shelf, French, Paris
Side table (commode servante or commode desserte)
Jean Henri Riesener
ca. 1790

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