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1 of 253523 objects
Set of settees c.1775-85
Gilt wood, silk damask | 101.8 x 188.0 x 83.7 cm (whole object) | RCIN 2421
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Set of four gilt wood settees, upholstered in red silk damask. Wreath and crossed laurel branches carved on centre of top back rail. Curved closed arm supports carved with honeysuckle ornament, terminating at top in scroll, garland and vase. Eight tapering fluted legs. These settees were made by the leading Parisian menuisier or chair and bed-maker, Georges Jacob (1739-1814). They were supplied through the marchand-mercier (dealer-decorator) Dominique Daguerre to the future George IV for use at his London residence Carlton House. At this time, the Prince of Wales was pursuing a highly refined French neo-classical style of interior decoration. A label on one of the settees refers to it as 'Canapé pour le salon'.
Provenance
These were supplied by the French dealer, Dominique Daguerre, employed by George IV to furnish Carlton House from 1787. Georges Jacob was a prominent Parisian master menuisier, producing carved and painted furniture and upholstery work, becoming a Maître Ebéniste on 4 September 1765. His first business was in the Rue de Cléry from 1767 and the Rue Meslée from 1775 where he employed specialist carvers and gilders. In 1791, the Le Chapelier law removed the guild system and Jacob diversified his workshop to include cabinet-making and mounted bronzes. Having survived the Revolution with the assistance of the artist Jacques Louis David, Jacob retired in 1796. He left his workshop to his two sons, Georges II and François-Honoré-Georges Jacob-Desmalter who traded as Jacob Frères. After the death of Georges II in 1803 Jacob came out of retirement to work with his younger son; the firm worked on a constant supply of furnishings for the Emperor Napoleon trading as Jacob Desmalter et Cie.
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Creator(s)
(chair maker)(nationality)Acquirer(s)
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Medium and techniques
Gilt wood, silk damask
Measurements
101.8 x 188.0 x 83.7 cm (whole object)
Category
Object type(s)
