An American ivory inlaid rosewood, fruitwood, birch, ebony, parcel-gilt and marquetry cabinet by the Herter Brothers, New York circa 1872-3

of inverted breakfront form with a later material panel on the top above a central cupboard drawer carved with a female bust with drapery and a thyrsus suspending berried laurel above flaming torches and a painted panel depicting a semi-naked female figure reclining and writing on a tablet flanked by a putto holding a globe opening to reveal a shelf flanked by two further doors with a recessed arched panel carved with a vase of flowers and scrolling foliage issuing from a cornucopia enclosing a shelf interposed by fluted plasters with Ionic capitals with recessed panel sides the base with panelled back platform stretcher arched apron on claw feet, the back with an inventory number in black ink 36547 twice

Inherited by the present owner from his father who purchased it from a member of the Vanderbilt family around 70 years ago.

In overall good conserved condition. Old very minor marks, chips and scratches consistent with age and use. The carving is very good as is the quality of the inlay. There is some mild staining on one of the internal shelves. There are some scattered hairline construction cracks by the legs but these are hardly noticeable. There is a approx. 3cm long section chipped off from the acanthus carving on the right side flanking the leg and also opposite it on the same section. There is also a minor section missing approx. 2cm long on the left leg on the opposite side which are not too noticeable. The feet are a bit scuffed. On two of the blocks above the pilasters there is a single husk missing from each making two in total.
"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:
Katherine S. Howe and others, Herter Brothers, Furniture and Interiors for the Gilded Age, Exhibition Catalogue, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1994, pp. 162 and 163, pp. 218-219, p. 218, Cat. no. 17, p. 218, Cat. no. 12, p. 220.

This unusual cabinet although not signed, bears all the distinctive hallmarks of the oeuvre of the renowned American cabinet-makers-the Herter Brothers and is almost certainly by this celebrated firm active in the second half of the 19th century. It is very similar in form and decoration to a cabinet now in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (M. 85. 27), illustrated op. cit. p. 162. The construction, ornament, contrasting light wood interior, marquetry, mask suspended on a thyrsus draped with trails of berried laurel leaves, painted reserve, stop-fluted pilasters with details highlighted in parcel-gilding and superlative quality place it within the production of the Herter Brothers around the early 1870's. There is also a related cabinet in Thurlow Lodge, Menlo Park, California. 

The cabinet combines classical ornament with superior cabinet-making. According to the Exhibition catalogue op. cit., p. 162, the Herter Brothers liked to see legs on their furniture and `When given the choice its designers apparently elected to raise cabinets and chests several inches off the ground, thereby affording a sense of airiness....'. The leg design became a trademark for Herter cabinets and clock cases in the 1870's and two legs are linked by an arch and the middle claw also lines up with the corner a feature of Herter brother legs of this type. The legs terminate in claw and ball feet. The carving of the mask is closely related to one illustrated op. cit. Cat. no. 12, p. 220. Furthermore the foliate decoration on the frieze is identical to that illustrated by the same author, op. cit, p. 218, Cat. no. 17. However, the offered cabinet differs with the Los Angeles example as it has a backboard.

The Herter Brothers

Christian Herter (1840-83) was born in Stuttgart in 1840 and studied at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris before joining his elder half-brother Gustav (1830-98) in New York in 1860, as Gustav had been there since 1848 and had worked for Tiffany before founding his own furniture and decorations firm in 1857. In 1864, Christian returned to Paris to study under Pierre-Victor Gallard and in the early 1870’s he was in England. The Herter brothers became one of the leading furniture and decorating firms in the 1870’s and 1880’s as they abandoned the usual historical revival styles to produce furniture similar to that being made in England at the same time with discreet use of oriental motifs. They made marquetry furniture for the railroad magnate Jay Gould in (1877-82), now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and luxurious gilt and inlaid furniture for the William H. Vanderbilt house in New York. The firm employed a large staff of craftsmen and designers.