A Louis XV brass and ebony 'Boulle' marquetry bureau plat, circa 1730-40 and later

By descent with the Earls Cowper at Panshanger House, Hertfordshire;

thence by descent to Francis Thomas de Grey Cowper, 7th Earl Cowper (1834–1905) who died without issue, leaving the Panshanger estate to his niece;

Ethel Anne Priscilla Grenfell (née Fane), Baroness Desborough (1867 – 1952);

thence by descent to the current owner.

This bureau plat, with its distinguished provenance, showcases a remarkably cohesive rococo language, combining inlaid floral marquetry with finely cast gilt-bronze mounts in the form of birds and naturalistic foliage. The result is a striking example of the refined craftsmanship and elegance of 18th-century French design. It offers an interesting interpretation of Boulle marquetry during the Louis XV period, embracing the flowing, organic lines of foliage popular in the 1730s and 1740s, in contrast to the highly codified and tight arabesque patterns favoured under Louis XIV.

The desk can be brought closer to the work the ébéniste BVRB I, Bernard Ier van Risamburgh (c.1660-1738) who really was the last of his generation to work with the Boulle marquetry technique in the Louis XV style. Compare the present with a bureau attributed to BVRB I sold at Sotheby's, New York, 19th April 2012, lot 128, and to a small group of pieces attributed to Risamburgh studied by Jean-Nérée Ronfort and Jean-Dominique Augarde (in 'Le Mâitre du bureau de l'Electeur', L'Estampille, January 1991, pp. 42-74), including a commode formerly owned by Louis-Charles de Machault (1667-1750) sold at Sotheby's, Paris, 11 October 2022, lot 26 (2,213,000 EUR), a bureau at the Wallace Collection in London (inv. F 59) and a bureau at the Louvre Museum (inv. OA 9538).

The design for the mounts is seen for example in the work of Pierre Migeon II - compare with a bureau plat stamped 'MIGEON' with similar handles sold at Christie's, New York, 17th May 2006, lot 60, and a cartonnier with a similar side mount sold at Sotheby's, New York, 17th November 1984, lot 251.

The Earls Cowper and Panshanger House

This bureau plat was in the collections of the Earls Cowper (pronounced Cooper), a title which was a distinguished English peerage created in 1718 for William Cowper, a prominent lawyer and statesman who became the first Lord Chancellor of Great Britain under Queen Anne. As Earls, the Cowpers played influential roles in British public life through law, politics, the military, and diplomacy.

The Cowper family had long-established roots in Hertfordshire, with their seat at Panshanger, a grand estate in the Gothic taste commissioned by Peter, 5th Earl Cowper (1778-1837) to Humphrey Repton. Completed by 1810, the house was situated in the redesigned Panshanger parkland, overlooking an artificially created lake on the river Mimram. The new building incorporated a large gallery in which the Earl could display the paintings collected by his father George.

The estate in Hertfordshire passed through the generations to Francis, 7th Earl Cowper (1834-1905), who without heir, left Panshanger to his favourite niece Ethel Fane, who had been orphaned at just three years old and had grown up under the guidance of her uncle. In 1887, Ettie, as she was known, married William Grenfell, later 1st Baron Desborough. A Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Mary and a celebrated hostess, Lady Desborough made Panshanger her home. Tragically Lord and Lady Desborough’s three sons predeceased Lady Desborough; following her death in 1952, the house and estate was sold and the house subsequently demolished, with the contents dispersed to the family.

A Louis XIV 'Boulle' marquetry commode also from the collections of the Earls Cowper at Panshanger was sold at Christie's, London, 22nd June 1989, lot 108.