A Louis XVI gilt-bronze mounted and mahogany bureau plat with a cartonnier, circa 1780, stamped by Jean-François Dubut

The furniture signed by Jean-François Dubut, the king's favored craftsman (whose date of accession to the master's degree is unknown), shows a highly eclectic talent, as he was able to traverse successive reigns with great consistency in the quality of his work. He used a wide variety of materials, from the insertion of lacquer panels to the finest marquetry, before finally giving in to the fashion for mahogany. This flat desk is a perfect illustration of the "English taste" that swept through Paris in the second half of the 18th century. It shows several facets of this fashion: the use of high quality mahogany, the sobriety of the lines, the architectural aspect, and the irreproachable quality of the workmanship. Originally used for harbor furniture, then in England, this exotic species was initially reserved in France for certain uses (toiletry or dining in particular) before becoming, under Louis XVI, the noble wood par excellence, used in solid wood or veneer. Like Jean-François Dubut, the other great cabinetmakers of the period - Riesener, Weisweiler, Canabas and Pierre Garnier - produced numerous pieces of mahogany furniture in the style of this emerging Anglomania.