A pair of gilt-bronze-mounted amaranth, tulipwood, kingwood, bois satiné and bois de bout marquetry encoignures by Pierre IV Migeon (1696-1758) Louis XV, mid 18th century

each of serpentine form with a rouge griotte marble top, above a door in inside of which is veneered in laburnum enclosing a shelf inlaid with floral sprays on cabriole legs, with gilt-bronze scroll, rocaille and foliate cast mounts, the whole inlaid in a chevron design, one stamped Migeon and both stamped JME, both with the anchor inventory marque au fer for the Duc de Penthièvre; feet retipped and restored

Duc de Penthievre (1725-1793)
Thence by descent to Anatole Demidoff, Prince of San Donato, San Donato, circa 1870
Prince Paul of Yugoslavia, Villa Demidoff in Pratolino
Thence sold by him Sotheby's London, Villa Demidoff, Pratolino, 22nd April 1969, lot 268.
Private Collection, Dallas, Texas.

 

In overall good conserved condition and can be placed immediately. An attractive model. Old very minor marks and chips to the marble tops and some water staining which can easily be cleaned off. Good quality casting and chasing of the mounts. There is a medium sized chip to both front left corners of the marble tops which can easily be restored. There are some old very minor restorations to the veneer which have been well executed and are hardly noticeable. There is some very minor surface dirt and rubbing to the gilt-bronze mounts. There are hairline splits and cracks to the veneer of both doors internally commensurate with age which is normal. There appears to be some water damage to the door of one along the edge where it opens and also by the hinges leaving a white residue which probably can be cleaned off.
"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:
Geoffrey de Bellaigue, The James A. de Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor, Furniture and Gilt-Bronzes, Vol. I, Fribourg, 1974, pp. 263-266.
Gerhard Hojer and Hans Ottomeyer, Das Möbel der Residenz München, Die Französischen Möbel des 18. Jahrhunderts, Vol. I, München,1995, pp. 121-123, no. 24 (Res. Mü. M 29 and M 30).
Guillaume Janneau, Le meuble Léger en France, Paris, 1952, fig. 57. 
Sophie Mouquin, Pierre IV Migeon, Paris, 2001,  pp. 72-74. 

This pair of elegant corner cupboards with their serpentine shape, slightly projecting apron with a pronounced serpentine lower edge with delicately inlaid bois de bout floral marquetry with looped foliate trails and hollow-centred flower-motifs and superbly cast gilt-bronze mounts are typical of the oeuvre of Pierre IV Migeon (1696-1758).

Compared to other related examples by Migeon (see post), this pair are more highly developed  in terms of the sophistication of their mounts and elegant design, for example, the rare hollow scrolled double mouldings. Furthermore, the marquetry panels on the doors of the corner-cupboards sold as pairs are usually matching but reversed in relation to one another as on the offered pair.

There are a number of related corner cupboards in important Private and Public collections, some of which are stamped by Migeon which including the following:
- a corner-cupboard circa 1755 stamped JME and attributed to Pierre II Migeon (now known to be Pierre IV Migeon) in the Waddesdon Manor collection and illustrated by Geoffrey de Bellaigue, op. cit., p. 265, reproduced here in fig. 1. Furthermore, the gilt-bronze mounts on the aforementioned pair are stamped five times with the Crown c poinçon.The bronzes differ to those on the offered lot but their shape and marquetry decoration are very similar. The veneer on the interior of its door is very close to that on the offered pair. It is interesting to note that the Waddesdon corner-cupboard had been fitted with a tapering support so as to prevent the piece toppling forward when the door is opened. Such additions were made in the 19th aswell as in the 18th century. 

-a pair stamped by Migeon with marquetry of a slightly more elaborate design and with a slight variation in shape is in the Residenzmuseum, Munich, illustrated by Hojer and  Ottomeyer, op. cit., p.121, no. 24.

- a pair reputedly unstamped and even more closely related to the Waddesdon pair, is in the collection of the Duke of Buccleuch at Drumlanrig Castle, the corner mounts and the mounts on the concave sections are identical to those on the Waddesdon pair and the marquetry is also the same as the aforementioned corner-cabinet including the veneer on the inside of the doors. However, the guide book of Drumlanrig Castle states that they are stamped `IDF' and possibly by Jacques Denizot.

-a single corner cupboard reputedly unstamped with different floral marquetry veneered with flowers on ebony stems is illustrated by Janneau, op. cit., fig. 57.

-a pair of encoignures stamped Migeon with bois de bout marquetry stamped Migeon in the Musée Historique, Basel.

-a pair stamped Migeon at the Kunstindustrimuseet of Copenhagen with a floral marquetry.

A similar pair of encoignures sold Sotheby's, New York, 17th November 1984, lot 199 ($50,000). 

Louis-Jean-Marie de Bourbon, Duc de Penthièvre (1725-93):
Although the encoignures have the anchor mark used by the Duc de Penthièvre, they do not contain the initials of one of his residences, for example, the hôtel de Toulouse in Paris, the castles of Amboise, Rambouillet, Sceaux, Chanteloup, Bizy or Anet which are normally found on each side of the anchor which makes the identification of the encoignures in 18th century inventories very difficult.

Louis-Jean-Marie was the grandson of Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan. In 1737 on the death of his father, the Comte de Toulouse, he succeeded to the post of Amiral de France, and inherited numerous other titles and positions. Through various familial connections the duc inherited châteaux throughout France, including Sceaux and Chanteloup.  He also owned the estate of Bizy in Normandy where he died. The château of Rambouillet, in which he was born, also belonged to him until 1783 when he was prevailed upon to dispose of it to Louis XVI. Chanteloup was a late acquisition. It had belonged to the duc de Choiseul. After the duke’s death in 1785 it was sold to the duc de Penthièvre on 26th July 1786. On Penthièvre’s death on 4th March 1793, his estates passed to his daughter Louise-Marie-Adelaide, duchesse d’Orleans, the wife of ‘Phillipe Egalite’. As members of the royal family their estates were seized during the French Revolution.

For further information on Pierre IV Migeon, see the footnote to  lot 106.