Christie’s Is Auctioning Furniture Once Owned by Marie Antoinette
As part of the auctioneer’s Paris edition of the “Exceptional Sale”.
Christie’s upcoming “Exceptional Sale”, as the name implies, is filled with rare objects that date all the way back to Roman times. The Paris edition, in particular, will spotlight works from 18th Century France, including two furnishings once owned by Queen Marie Antoinette.
The first piece, a commode crafted in 1770 by Pierre Macret, demonstrated “one of the finest exponents of the façon de la Chine in France — or indeed in Europe,” according to Christies, adding, its “tôle-dorée doors, curved like rolling waves, feature bucolic chinoiserie landscapes: craggy Asiatic mountains, trees forked like lightning, standing figures in flowing robes.”
The second item, an Etruscan-style armchair, was made roughly 20 years later as the Queen sought to refurnish her apartments at Versailles. The remodeling was short-lived, as several months later, the French Revolution swept passed the monarchy’s reign over the country.
“Pieces from the art collection of Marie Antoinette do not appear often on the market, and pieces of that importance are even rarer,” said Christie’s VP and director of decorative arts Simon de Monicault, in an interview with Artnet News.
The commode is expected sell for roughly €800,000 to €1,200,000 EUR (approximately $819,328 USD to $1,228,992 USD), while the Louis XVI Etruscan Royal Armchair by Georges Jacob is estimated to fetch €100,000 to €200,000 EUR (approximately $102,416 USD to $204,832 USD). Bidding ends at 4pm CET tomorrow, November 22.
In related news, Shen the T. Rex pulled from upcoming Christie’s Hong Kong auction.
