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1 of 253523 objects
Open armchair c.1786
Gilt wood, brass, silk brocade | 106.7 x 72.4 x 72.4 cm (whole object) | RCIN 2537
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Set of five (originally six) square backed armchairs of beechwood, carved and gilded with the seat frame bowed at the front, supported on fluted tapering circular legs. Square back is formed by a border decorated with carved flower head motifs surmounted by a garland of flowers and crossed laurel branches tied with a bow. Scrolled arms. Frame carved with rosettes within discs.
These armchairs 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.Provenance
Probably acquired for George IV when Prince of Wales, by Dominique Daguerre, c.1787; reproduced in Pyne's engraving of the Ante Room at Carlton House in 1818. 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)(restorer)(nationality)Acquirer(s)
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Medium and techniques
Gilt wood, brass, silk brocade
Measurements
106.7 x 72.4 x 72.4 cm (whole object)
Other number(s)
M&S : Roberts, H., 2001. For the King's Pleasure: George IV's Apartments at Windsor Castle, London – M&S 477M&S : Roberts, H., 2001. For the King's Pleasure: George IV's Apartments at Windsor Castle, London – M&S 478M&S : Roberts, H., 2001. For the King's Pleasure: George IV's Apartments at Windsor Castle, London – M&S 479
