Paul Sormani 1817 - 1887 A pair of Louis XVI style gilt-bronze mounted kingwood, satiné and satinwood commodes, Paris, last quarter 19th century, after the model by Charles Topino

each surmounted by a Sarrancolin Opéra marble top above a frieze drawer and two deep drawers, each lock plate engraved PAUL SORMANI/ 10 rue Charlot. Paris

 J. Nicolay, L'Art et la Manière des Maîtres Ebénistes au XVIIIe Siècle, Paris, 1956, fig. AH. for a related commode by Charles Topino

With its typical transitional outline and specific gilt bronze mount designs, this pair of commodes relates to another stamped by Topino, which was exhibited in 'Grands Ebénistes et Menuisiers Parisiens du XVIIIe siècle', Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, December 1955 - February 1956, lot 321.

Paul Sormani (1817-1877) was one of the most important Parisian cabinet makers of the second half of the 19th century. He commenced business at 7 Cimetière Saint-Nicolas and in 1847 moved to 114 rue du Temple. By 1867, when he opened at 10 rue Charlot, he was at the pinnacle of his success. A contemporary source describes his work in glowing terms, "toute sa production révèle une qualité d'exécution de tout premier ordre".

Sormani first showed his work at the 1849 Paris exhibition where he was awarded a bronze medal and again, at the International Exhibition in 1855, when he obtained a first class medal. He travelled to London in 1862, where he gained another award and was given special mention for his petits meubles de fantaisie et objet décoratifs en bronze at the Paris exhibition of 1867.