Buffet d'Apparat Stamped De

Guillaume Grohé (1808-1885), born in the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt, moved to Paris around 1827. With his brother Jean-Michel, he ran a successful "Grohé Frères" furniture and objets d'art firm, and successfully presented works at the Exposition des Produits de l'Industrie in 1834. His success was both rapid and considerable. He was awarded the Légion d'honneur in 1849, and subsequently promoted to Officer of the Order. In 1861, his brother retired from the business, leaving Guillaume alone at the helm. With no successor, the company ceased trading in 1884. Within a few years, he became one of the leading cabinetmakers of his time. Supplier to King Louis XVIII (Louis XIV-style console table, 1844 National Exhibition; a piece of Renaissance-style ebony museum furniture, 1844), King Louis-Philippe, Emperor Napoleon III (mahogany dining room, Palais de Saint-Cloud, 1855; numerous pieces of mahogany furniture, Palais de Compiègne; Renaissance-style mahogany furniture, Palais de Fontainebleau, 1859), and after 1862, to Queen Victoria. Specializing in the manufacture of period furniture, he was commissioned by the Duc d'Aumale to furnish the Château de Chantilly, and by Madame Pelouze to furnish the Château de Chenonceaux. He was a brilliant participant and jury member at several World's Fairs. According to the jury's report on the 1878 Paris Exposition Universelle, Grohé is described as "the undisputed master of modern cabinetmaking, for whom all forms of praise have been exhausted, just as he has exhausted all series of awards". Finally, in an 1884 article in Le Figaro, Maxime Boucheron states that "Grohé was a truly great master of nineteenth-century artistic cabinetmaking. A career spanning more than fifty years filled our museums and national palaces with incomparable masterpieces. He ensured the preponderance of French taste in luxury furnishings".

Ref: JR9UA014OU