A Swedish gilt-lead mirror à parecloses, in the taste of Burchard Precht, 19th century

Burchard Precht (1651-1738) was a sculptor and cabinetmaker from Bremen, trained in Hamburg by his brother Christian Precht (1635-1694). He established his workshop in Sweden, arriving there in 1674 to participate in the work undertaken at Drottningholm Palace and was appointed court sculptor in 1682.

The shape of Scandinavian mirrors and the use of beaded borders reflect his taste for France, which he visited with the court architect Nicodemus Tessin in 1687-1688. Furthermore, the characteristic presence of this type of pediment, with its double C-shaped scrolls and fruit baskets, as well as the use of gilt metal, is typical of his work.

A similar mirror can be found in the former Wrightsman Collection, illustrated in F.J.B. Watson, The Wrightsman Collection, volume II, New York, 1966, no. 209, pl. 395 as well as a mirror illustrated in S. Roche, Mirror, New York, 1985, plate VII