Antique Empire Revival Bureau Plat Desk Writing Table & Armchair 19th C

This is a fine antique French gilt-bronze mounted mahogany Empire bureau plat complete with it's original desk chair, Circa 1860 in date.

The rectangular top is fitted with a green gold-tooled inset leather writing surface, the frieze with three spacious drawers. The desk features finely cast ormolu mounts in the classic Empire style including anthemion, palmette mounts, swan escutcheons and laurel wreaths.

The desk is raised on four square section tapering legs standing on square gilded lion's paw sabots. The desk and the armchair feature neo classical sphinxes and the armchair has been reupholstered in green leather with brass studwork.

The desk is finished all round so it can stand freely in the centre of a room and is sure to get lots of attention wherever it is placed.

Complete with original working locks and keys.

Condition:

In excellent condition having been beautifully cleaned, polished, waxed, releathered and the chair reupholstered, in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation.

Dimensions in cm:

Height 75 x Width 140 x Depth 80 - Desk

Height 78 x Width 60 x Depth 54 - Chair

Dimensions in inches:

Height 2 foot, 5 inches x Width 4 foot, 7 inches x Depth 2 foot, 7 inches - Desk

Height 2 foot, 7 inches x Width 2 feet x Depth 1 foot, 9 inches - Chair

Ormolu - (from French 'or moulu', signifying ground or pounded gold) is an 18th-century English term for applying finely ground, high-carat gold in a mercury amalgam to an object of bronze.The mercury is driven off in a kiln leaving behind a gold-coloured veneer known as 'gilt bronze'.

The manufacture of true ormolu employs a process known as mercury-gilding or fire-gilding, in which a solution of nitrate of mercury is applied to a piece of copper, brass, or bronze, followed by the application of an amalgam of gold and mercury. The item was then exposed to extreme heat until the mercury burned off and the gold remained, adhered to the metal object.

After around 1830 because legislation had outlawed the use of mercury other techniques were used instead. Electroplating is the most common modern technique. Ormolu techniques are essentially the same as those used on silver, to produce silver-gilt..

Our reference: A2591