A Fine Side Table in the Louis XVI Manner

A Fine Side Table in the Louis XVI Manner.

Of rectangular form, constructed in amboyna and mahogany dressed with chinoiserie lacquer panels, and fine ormolu mounts; rising from ormolu mounted toupie feet, supporting the lower platform finished with aventurine gold speckled lacquer, itself adorned with running swags; the fluted tapering legs having square form ormolu bases, with octagonal ormolu capitols; the spring activated button operated breakfront form drawer and the sides mounted with chinoiserie panels within stiff leaf cast surrounds, with the brocatelle d’Espagne marble top platform enclosed by an ormolu guard band. Bearing the maker’s stamp to the underside as well his signature in the ormolu.
French, dated 1891

A handful of versions of this table by Henry Dasson have appeared on the market, the present example with the aventurine lacquer undertier being the rarest variant.

Henry Dasson (1825-1896) was a renowned Parisian furniture maker in the nineteenth century, known for his exquisite gilt-bronze mounted furniture. Unlike his contemporaries, Dasson initially pursued a career as a bronze sculptor, which influenced the exceptional quality of his bronze work and intricate chiseling.

Dasson operated his workshop at 106 rue Vieille-du-Temple in Paris, specializing in crafting furniture in the styles of Louis XIV, XV, and XVI. In 1871, Dasson acquired the thriving business and remaining inventory of Charles-Guillaume Winckelsen, a well-regarded furniture maker renowned for his superior craftsmanship. It is believed that Dasson inherited the art of ciseleur (chiseling) from Winckelsen.

Dasson showcased his works at the 1878 and 1889 Paris Expositions Universelles, exhibiting pieces in the styles of Louis XV and XVI, as well as his own modified eighteenth-century designs. Lord Dudley and Lady Ashburton were among his renowned clients at the exhibitions, as well as the English Royal Family.

Made a chevalier of the Légion d'honneur in 1883, he was elevated to an officier in 1889, following his success at the Paris Exposition of the same year. Dasson ceased production in 1894, and the enduring reputation of the finest maker of gilt-bronze mounted furniture was echoed and acknowledged when his contemporaries Paul Sormani, J.E. Zwiener, Maison Millet, and Beurdeley all jumped at the chance to acquire drawings and models by Dasson. Nevertheless, the pieces created by Dasson remain without equal, and stand at the epitome of nineteenth-century French furniture.

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