A pair of Louis XV/XVI grey-painted marquises circa 1766, stamped P. Bernard, JME

each with a rectangular padded backrest carved with beading and twisted ribbon, the padded armrests on molded voluted supports, serpentine seat rail carved with flowerheads and leaf tips raised on cabriole legs.

Pierre Bernard (c. 1730-1788) was the son of a cabinet-maker and although he was established in the faubourg Saint-Antoine, the preferred territory of Parisian cabinet-makers, he became a menuisier.  Bernard produced seat furniture in both rococo and neoclassical styles.  There are examples of his work in the transitional style including two armchairs in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.