A pair of Italian bone, mother-of-pearl and fruitwood marquetry stands, Piedmont, in the manner of Pietro Piffetti, circa 1740

The bold scrolls, the shell motif, the engraved bone foliage decorative elements of these pedestals, as well as the lattice inlays with the overall combination of engraved mother-of-pearl, bone and fruitwood banding on a kingwood ground, is very much in the manner of the celebrated Turinese ebanista Pietro Piffetti (1770-1777).

Piffetti was indisputably the greatest Italian cabinet-maker and one of the most extraordinary virtuosi of 18^th century (his work illustrated in Elio Quaglino, Il Piemonte, 1966, pp.106-110; and Roberto Antonetto, Il Mobile Piemontese nel Settecento, Vol II, 2010, pp.129-282). His work is characterised by an extraordinary fluidity of line in combination with an unparalleled technical skill and lavish use of precious woods and exotics materials such as ivory, mother-of-pearl and tortoiseshell. He largely exercised his craft in Turin, having arrived there from Rome at the invitation of Charles Emanuel III, King of Sardinia. He was appointed Ebanista Reale on July 13th, 1731 and worked continuously for the royal court until his death. He provided works not only for the King and the Queen, but also for the King's eldest son, the Duca di Savoia (1726-1796), who succeeded his father as Vittorio Amedeo III), for the Royal Princesses, for the King's youngest son, the Duca del Chiablese and for other members of the Royal family and aristocracy. Many of Piffetti's works are documented and few are signed, but archival research still remains complicated and incomplete, especially on furniture not made for the Royal family.