A PAIR OF ITALIAN CREAM PAINTED AND PARCEL-GILT STOOLS, AFTER THE MODEL BY NICOLAS-QUINIBERT FOLIOT, PIEDMONT, CIRCA 1780 |

each with a square padded top above a shaped frieze centred by a ribbon-tied oak leaf wreath with a thyrsus, on leaf carved baluster legs inset with acanthus leaf panels on toupie feet, covered in gold and cream silk, each stool with several unidentified marks, both stools marked D.A, one marked IIII, the other with the numbers in ink 5 and 401, with further inventory number from Giuseppe Rossi Collection: n. 58287/ 60182/ 76085

Most probably Palazzina di Caccia, Stupinigi;
Giuseppe Rossi, Turin; 
Sotheby's, London, From the Estate of the Late Giuseppe Rossi, 10 March 1999, lot 55 (as set of four)

M. Agnellini, Mobili Italiani del Settecento, Milan, 1990, p. 145;
E. Quaglino, Il Piemonte, Milan, 1966, p. 173;
G Mazzariol, Mobili del Seicento e del Settecento, Milan, 1964, p. 146, pl. B (from the Pietro Accorsi Collection, Turin);
G. Wannenes, Mobili d'Italia, Milan, 1984, p. 159;

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE

E. Quaglino, MobiLi Regionali Italiani, II Piemonte, Turin, 1966, p. 173, where the identical Stupingi example is illustrated.
V. Viale, Mostra del barocco Piemontese, Turin, 1963, vol. III, pl. 201 A.

This elegant pair of stools is in good conserved condition, having been re-gilt and with the white decoration refreshed. There are traces of gilding underneath the white decoration. The very few woodworm holes are not distracting, and the woodworm activity no longer appears to be active. There are signs of glue to the leg joints and to the pin holes of the leg joints. The seats are removable and are fixed to the frame with hooks. They have been re-upholstered but have their original frames and have old weaving, probably period. One stool missing roundel to wreath, and two roundels with a break. The other stool with one missing roundel to wreath and another with a break. The current upholstery is overall in good condition. The upholstery to the corner of one stool with some marks made by a pen. Small losses to gilding and minor old marks and scratches consistent with age and use. Ready to be placed. Each stool with several unidentified marks: both stools marked D.A. One marked IIII, the other with the numbers in ink 5 and 401. With further inventory number from Giuseppe Rossi Collection: n. 58287/ 60182/ 76085 Dimensions: each 47cm. high, 44cm. wide Detailed images are available upon request to the furniture department.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

These stools, after a design by Foliot, are probably part of a set of seat furniture from the Palazzina di Caccia, Stupinigi, the Royal hunting lodge on the outskirts of Turin (fig.1). Wanting to embrace the inspiring elegance of the Louis XVI period and using a successful example by Nicolas Quinibert Foliot as a model, this ensemble shows the best traits of the neoclassical period, with the simplicity of form, gilded decoration on the cream painted background and fine carving. As part of a larger set, six stools are at Stupinigi (E. Quaglino, op.cit., p. 173, illustrating one) and at least another three pairs have surfaced on the market:

- a pair sold from a European Private collection, sold Sotheby’s, London, 11 June, 2003, lot 207;
- a pair, from the collection of Evelyn Anneberg Hall, sold Christie’s, New York, 17 May, 2006, lot 341;
- a pair sold Sotheby’s London, 17 November 2009, lot 17.

The manufacture of these stools as part of a larger matching suite is further confirmed by the inventory marks and Roman numerals underneath most stools, by the existence of interior shots at Stupinigi and finally by pieces of the same design sold from or indeed held in other collections. One of the stools is seen matched with a settee at Stupinigi, fig. 2 (illustrated in G. Mazzariol, op.cit., p. 145, pl. C). Another suite of stools is seen matched with chairs and armchairs, illustrated in La Galleria di Palazzo Reale a Genova, pl. XI. A banquette, from a European Private Collection, was sold Sotheby’s, London, 11 June, 2003, lot 206. Additionally, an armchair from the same suite is recorded in the Royal Palace of Genoa, where it was brought from Turin by the Savoy family (illustrated in L. Leoncini, Galleria di Palazzo Reale, Genova, 1996, p.55) - fig.3.

A pair stamped by Nicolas-Quinibert Foliot (maître in 1729) which was sold Christie’s New York (Arts of France, 6 October 2001, lot 349), was possibly the model for the suite as, interestingly, the stools stamped Foliot are marked with the numbers XXXXX, the other VIIII and II, which identically correspond to those found on the present pair. Interestingly, this was not an unfamiliar practice. For example, Jean-Baptiste Tilliard supplied a suite of furniture to the Duchess of Parma in 1755 which was subsequently copied at the time by Italian craftsmen. 

As one of the fournisseurs du Garde-Meuble Royal under Louis XVI, Foliot supplied seat furniture to Versailles, the Trianon, Fontainebleau, Compiègne and Saint-Hubert amongst other Royal residences and would accordingly be a name most suitable as the influence on the seat furntiure supplied to Stupinigi. This Royal hunting palace was originally conceived by Fillippo Juvarra in 1729 for Vittorio Amadeo II, but the construction of the magnificent palace continued throughout the decades and was only completed at the end of King Carlo Emanuele III’s reign (1730-1773). It was during this time that G.M. Bonzanigo, often referred to as the possible maker of these suites, was first employed by the Savoia family, being appointed wood-carver to Victor-Amadeo III (1773-1796) in 1787.