A German ebony inlaid ivory and japanned small table cabinet, probably Dresden, in the manner of Martin Schnell circa 1730

in the Japanese manner, of bombé form, with a hinged rectangular top, above concave sides concealing a recess, opening to reveal a pair of doors enclosing nine short drawers in ivory with ebony stringing, above a frieze drawer on squat cabriole legs, the whole decorated with reserves depicting Japanese landscapes and birds on a speckled gold lacquer ground

Comparative Literature:
Reiner Baarsen, German Furniture, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 1998, pp. 44-47.

This piece with its japanning imitating gold lacquer on a black ground is in very close to Japanese lacquer work and bears close similarities to the work of the celebrated 18^th century German lacquer master Martin Schnell, who often copied certain motifs from the Japanese lacquer repertoire.  

Martin Schnell (c. 1675-1740?):
Schnell set up his business in Dresden in 1710 was the most important lacquer master working for Augustus, the Strong(1670-1733), Elector of Saxony, and King of Poland from 1697. There are a few lacquered vases listed in an inventory under Schnell’s name drawn up in 1721 and are the only recorded pieces known definitely to be by his hand. From accounts one can ascertain that he lacquered other pieces such as cabinets, tables, chairs, cabinets, screens and musical instruments, weapons, fans and porcelain. There are several pieces of furniture attributed to him including the largest group comprising cabinets after Japanese models, such as the one in the Rijksmuseum, illustrated by Baarsen, op. cit., p. 47, decorated with reserves on the internal drawers in a similar manner to those on this piece.