A pair of Napoleon III gilt-bronze mounted, brass and pietre dure ebonized meubles d'appui, circa 1855, attributed to Hippolyte-Edmé Pretot

The present pair of meubles à hauteur d’appui and their style, particularly the use of semi-precious hardstone ornament, attributes them to the maker Hippolyte-Edmé Pretot (1812-1855) who was renowned for his creation of ‘meubles incrustés’ (furniture applied with pietre dure) in the 19^th century.

Pietre dure typically refers to the Florentine mosaic of hard and semi precious stones in a technique practised from the beginning of the 17^th century. Though the technique was pioneered at the time in Italy, it soon made its way to France where Louis XIV promoted it and even opened his own workshop for pietre dure at the Gobelins Manufactory. The appeal for pietre dure, characterized by the rich colours of the stones contrasting a black marble back or ebony/ebonished veneer, did not seize in the centuries and several French cabinet makers in the 19^th century repurposed 17^th/18th century original panels and also expertly created their own executions such as Hippolyte-Edmé Pretot, here carving hardstones in relief. A pair of similar meubles d’appui signed PRETOT were sold at Sotheby’s, Hong Kong, Age of Elegance, 6-16 January 2014, lot 11. A console table by Pretot also featuring panels inlaid with hardstones was sold at Christie’s, London, The Opulent Eye, 18 September 2014, lot 250.

Hippolyte-Edmé Pretot (1812-1855) was born in Paris and was established at 16, rue de l'abbaye in 1836; 11, bis, rue Saint-Germain-des-Prés in 1841; and from 1846 at 3 & 5 rue de Harlay. He exhibited at the Exposition Nationale in 1849 and at the 1851 Great Exhibition in London, where he obtained a second class medal for a collection of hardstone inlaid furniture.