A Russian malachite veneered and gilt-bronze centre table mid 19th century

the malachite top veneered in a mosaic pattern, the stem with three addorsed grotesque masks on three reeded legs cast with scrolls and foliage interposed by a stylised anthemion on paw feet 

Originally in a Private Collection, London

Antoine Chenevière, Russian Furniture, The Golden Age 1780-1840, London, 1989, illustrated p.281, plate 306. 

In overall good conserved condition. The top: old or marks, chips and areas of infill commensurate with age and normal usage. There are also some minor restorations to the veneer on the border to the top but these have been well executed. The base: Attractive detail to casting. There are some screw head sized holes between the masks where there were possibly previously a mount. Good quality casting. The screw is missing from two of the anthemion mounts flanking the legs but these can easily be replaced. There is some minor surface dirt to the base which can easily be cleaned off. There are some very minor casting cracks which are hardly noticeble. There is an approx 2cm by 1cm rectangular patch to one of the legs but this is hardly noticeable and behind each leg there are two iron hooks. There is a piece of card beneath the top perhaps to stabilise which is obviously a later addition. There is an old restoration to the paw foot on one leg.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Comparative Literature:
Antoine Chenevière, Russian Furniture, The Golden Age 1780-1840, London, 1989.
Christopher Payne, European Furniture of the 19th century, Woodbridge, 2013, pp. 554-555, 556, for related Russian gilt-bronze and malachite veneered centre tables.

This highly unsual table with its finely veenered malachite top in the `Russian mosaic' technique on a beautifully cast gilt-bronze base demonstrates the virtuoso technique of the Russian stonecutters in the middle years of the 19th century.The vibrant green of the malachite contrasts brilliantly with the gilt-bronze base.

Due to the fragile nature of malachite, it is not possible to use it on large scale pieces but the Russian lapidiaries perfected a technique to compensate for this, known as `Russian mosaic'. It has been described thus, see Chenevière, op. cit., p. 206, `The blocks of malachite are sawn into millimetre-thick slices. These are then cut according to the pattern of the stone and the various pieces are reunited one by one to forrm a pleasing design making sure that the joins are as near to invisible as possible. This whole design is then fixed to a stone or metal base, the imperfections are then ground down and then it is polished.' (A. E. Fersman). According to Chenevière, op. cit., p. 266, it was essential that the base to which the veneer was fixed was made of copper, iron, stone, schist or marble as the surface had to be completely smooth which would not deteriorate or buckle. Once the veneer was sanded down it was polished with a light paste of tin oxide and sometimes fragments of malachite was mixed into a green coloured paste and used to fill the spaces between the larger pieces of malachite.

The best known malachite workshop was that owned by the Demidov family who owned several mines including the celebrated Nijni Tagil malachite mine. In 1833, Prince Demidov presented Tsar Nicholas I with a malachite and gilt-bronze cupola in the shape of a Greek Temple and it so impressed St. Petersburg society that it single-handedly relaunched the vogue for malachite objects according to the author, op. cit.. It is also worthwhile noting that malachite had been produced in St, Petersburg since 1760 but in about 1840, L. Leopold Joffrian perfected a machine which could cut very fine pieces of malachite along the lines of concentric veining without the risk of breaking or flaking them, as a result lapidiaries began producing much larger pieces.