{"product_id":"french-kingwood-bonheur-du-jour-with-vernis-martin-panels-ormolu-mounts-19th-century","title":"French Kingwood Bonheur du Jour with Vernis Martin Panels \u0026 Ormolu Mounts - 19th Century","description":"\u003ch3\u003eOverview\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn exceptionally fine and rare French bonheur du jour in kingwood with Vernis Martin painted panels, ormolu mounts throughout, and birdseye maple interior linings. French, 19th century - Napoleon III period, circa 1860–1880, in the Louis XVI taste. A piece of this decorative quality and completeness is seldom encountered - the combination of superb kingwood veneers, richly painted Vernis Martin panels, and well-cast ormolu mounts places this firmly in the upper tier of nineteenth-century French cabinet-making.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eKey Features\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eNapoleon III period, circa 1860–1880 - Louis XVI taste\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eKingwood veneers quarter-cut in herringbone pattern throughout\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eCentral arched cupboard door with Vernis Martin pastoral scene - lady with dog beneath a tree\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eBirdseye maple interior lining with two adjustable shelves\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eTwo side drawers with hand-painted floral panels and original gilt brass knob handles\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003ePull-out secretaire drawer lined in blue baize writing surface\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003ePierced gilt brass gallery to the superstructure\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eOrmolu mounts throughout - foliate rosettes, scrolled corner mounts, and cabriole sabot feet\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCraftsmanship \u0026amp; Detail\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe upper superstructure is surmounted by a pierced gilt brass gallery, with ormolu foliate rosette mounts to the upper corners. The central arched cupboard door is painted in the Vernis Martin manner - a pastoral scene executed on the characteristic warm golden ground associated with the finest examples of this technique. The aged craquelure to the painted surface is consistent with genuine age and a mark of authenticity. The frieze drawer to the front is painted with a charming scene of putti flanking a central ormolu cartouche mount. Throughout, the kingwood veneers are quarter-cut and laid in a herringbone pattern, producing the characteristic warm figuring typical of the finest Second Empire and Napoleon III period pieces. The Vernis Martin technique - a lacquer-painting process developed in eighteenth-century France by the Martin brothers and widely revived during the Second Empire — is here applied with considerable skill and artistic ambition.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Hawkins Antiques","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57211729903993,"sku":null,"price":4250.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0993\/6633\/8937\/files\/bomhuermain.jpg?v=1777909001","url":"https:\/\/hawkinsantiques.com\/products\/french-kingwood-bonheur-du-jour-with-vernis-martin-panels-ormolu-mounts-19th-century","provider":"Hawkins Antiques","version":"1.0","type":"link"}