A Maltese ivory inlaid burrwood and marquetry bureau cabinet second quarter 18th century

the upper section with a swan neck pediment above a pair of mirrored doors opening to reveal drawers centred by a mirrored panelled door and flanked by two shelves, the fall-front enclosing a mirrored door flanked by two pigeonholes above four short drawers, above four long drawers, on block feet, the decoration with Berainesque panels, on the reverse two papers labels : "Mostra del barocco piemontese /Espositore Signori dall'Osta ...."", " Dott. Cav. Giovanni Lucangeli .... Firenze"; later finials; minor restorations

Signori dall'Osta,Torino
Giovanni Lucangeli, Firenze

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mostra del Barocco Piemontese, Torino.

In overall good conserved condition. Colour slightly darker overall and more natural and attractive than in the catalogue photograph. Old very minor marks, chips, scratches and hairline cracks in the veneer commensurate with age, as visible from the catalogue photograph. The ball finials are later. There is a very minor traingular section of mirror plate missing from the top left of the left mirrored panel as visible from the catalogue photograph but this is not too noticeable. The inlay and some of the mouldings have been restored. There are some very minor restorations to the veneer eg there is an oval patch insid the fall-front. The escutcheons are probably later and so are the handles on the drawers inside the fall-front, one of which has a section chipped off but can easily be restored. There is a small hairline construction crack on the left side of the fall-front which can be left or easily filled.
"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:
John Manduca, Antique Furnitrure in Malta, Malta, 2002, pp. 166-170 and p. 203.
Galea-Naudi and D. Micallef, Antique Maltese Furniture, Valetta, 1989, p. 47.
In 17th century Malta, the Knights of St. John became a powerful force and had a direct influence on the architecture of the Palaces and their furnishings. These Maltese bureaux were usually of similar form and only differed in their ornamental pediment -they either had a double-domed top, arched pediment or broken timpanum, examples of which are in the Palace of the Knights of St. John, Valetta.

These pieces were usually veneered in olivewood and inlaid in fruitwood with `seaweed' marquetry. Rarely are they inlaid in ivory, as on the present piece, see for example a commode illustrated by Manuca, op. cit., p. 203, described as Maltese/Italian and he refers to the similarity with the work of Pietro Piffetti, the Piedmontese ebanista and that it is quite possible that the commode (one of a  pair), was manufactured in Malta by an Italian craftsman in a local workshop, in the manner of Piffetti.  

This rare cabinet richly veneered in precious ivory, takes its inspiration from the designs of Jean Berain (d.1711), one the greatest designers and ornamentalists working at the end of the 17th century and beginning of the 18th century. His extraordinary compositions were adopted and adapted by cabinet makers and other designers working during the reign of Louis XIV. Berain was inspired by the whimsical and the offered piece features many of the decorative motifs from his repertoire, such as masks, garlands, festoons, flowers, grotesque beasts and the fall-front is centred by the canopied winged allegorical figure.

Ivory has been used to great effect and this exotic material would have been used, at great expense, as a contrast against the richly figured veneers that frame these panels. 

The form of this cabinet is derived from the more restrained functional furniture of the George I period in England, most notably through the employment of a graceful swan neck pediment and double arched doors which surmount a bureau with fall and series of drawers.A related bureau cabinet was illustrated in the Connoisseur, June 1971, with similay ivory inlaid marquetry panels, which was presented to Major General the Hon. Sir Frederick Ponsonby K.C.B., by the people of Malta on his retirement as Governor General in 1836. 

Another though far  less elaborate example, inlaid in ivory with berainesque motifs, was sold Christie's London, 21 June 2000, lot 225.