{"product_id":"antique-french-louis-xvi-marquetry-commode","title":"Antique French Louis XVI Marquetry Commode","description":"\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePrice does not include shipping.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eAntique French Louis XVI marquetry commode, made in France in the late eighteenth century. The case is a low chest of three long drawers with a slightly projecting top, geometric parquetry across the front and sides, and the tapered square legs of the neoclassical period.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eWhat sets it apart is the veneer work. Each drawer front carries a banded rectangular panel of quarter-figured wood framed by contrasting stringing, and the pattern carries onto the canted front angles and the panelled ends. The original oval beaded pulls and beaded escutcheons are still in place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eIt is a genuine period piece, not a later revival, which the hand-cut dovetails, draw-bored peg joints, and riven backboards confirm.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003e[d]Dimensions | 31.25 in H x 46.5 in W x 21.5 in D\u003cbr\u003e[d]Finish | Cleaned and waxed, later surface, method not established\u003cbr\u003e[d]Primary Wood | Assessed as figured oak and fruitwood veneers with walnut and boxwood banding; see condition note\u003cbr\u003e[d]Period | Antique\u003cbr\u003e[d]Date | Circa 1780 to 1800\u003cbr\u003e[d]Origin | France\u003cbr\u003e[d]Style | Louis XVI\u003cbr\u003e[d]Also Known As | commode\u003cbr\u003e[d]Maker or Attribution | Unstamped, no maker's mark located\u003cbr\u003e[d]Construction | Veneered softwood and fruitwood carcass, hand-cut through dovetailed drawers, draw-bored pegged mortise and tenon case joints, riven backboards\u003cbr\u003e[d]Secondary Wood | Softwood, with pine drawer linings\u003cbr\u003e[d]Hardware | Oval beaded stamped-brass pulls and beaded escutcheons\u003cbr\u003e[d]Drawers | Three long drawers\u003cbr\u003e[d]Keys | None present\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003e[condition]\u003cbr\u003eThis is a genuine late eighteenth-century commode and it shows the wear of its age honestly. Please read this section with the photos, which govern.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe top had an open, full-length shrinkage split with cupping and lifting to the boards along it. We have glued and stabilized the top; the boards now sit substantially back in plane and the split is closed and repaired along its length, with a fine residual line and slight variation still visible at the edge on close inspection. The top is solid and stable. This is a disclosed structural repair to the most visible surface of the piece and is shown in the photographs. There is veneer loss and lifting at the top right drawer corner, a smaller loss along the top front edge, and a loss to one inlaid corner spandrel. Scattered small veneer chips, lifting, and old filled areas appear across the front and top consistent with age. The parquetry is otherwise sound and well figured.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eAll three drawer bottoms have significant shrinkage splits running the length of the riven pine boards, wide and open in places, consistent with age and seasonal movement. The drawers remain functional but the splits are substantial and are shown in the photographs. Old worm flight is present across the drawer sides, bottoms, and backboards; I have not had the piece tested for active infestation and am noting the flight as historic in appearance only.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe surface has been cleaned and waxed at some point; this is a later surface and I cannot establish the original finish or the method used, so I am not calling it original. The primary show wood is veneer over a softwood and fruitwood carcass. Because it is veneered and figured I am giving the species as an assessment rather than a proven fact: it reads as figured oak and fruitwood with walnut and boxwood banding, but I have not confirmed species and the banding could include other fruitwoods.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe backboards are riven and hand-worked with genuine old worm flight and oxidation, secured with cut nails. The drawers are hand-dovetailed and run, with wear to the runners and drawer edges as expected. The original oval pulls and beaded escutcheons are present and appear original to the piece; the locks are present but I have not tested them and no keys are present. The legs are sound. Dimensions are as measured. Sold as-is, with the photographs governing the sale.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e#103\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Austyn Marie Design","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51482660569366,"sku":"AMD-03542","price":3200.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0896\/4623\/5926\/files\/Belgium_FranceInventoryContinued-10205.jpg?v=1785452571","url":"https:\/\/austyn-marie.myshopify.com\/products\/antique-french-louis-xvi-marquetry-commode","provider":"Austyn Marie Design","version":"1.0","type":"link"}