Antwerp cabinet - 17th century

Free-standing cabinet in red tortoiseshell and bone fillet veneer on an oak and softwood frame. The sides are inlaid with exotic "partridge wood", framed with bone fillets.

It opens with two rows of five drawers on the sides, 2 drawers in the lower section, and 2 architectural drawers framing the central doors from above and below.

The drawer fronts are framed with wavy ebony "guilloche" moldings, and have no pull knobs. A cutout in the upper part of the drawers accommodates the key to open and pull the (rear) locks.

The 2 doors, with their round-arched architectural decorations, are framed on either side by sheaths supporting a gilded wood baluster in the middle, and bronze atlantes supporting a capital on either side.

These 2 doors open onto a perspective "theater", showing an architectural interior of mirrors framed by gilded wood spiral columns with a checkerboard floor; on either side, a row of false drawers. At the far end, this perspective leads us to a Cupid painted on wood in grisaille.

The late 19th-century blackened wood support table is composed of 4 inverted twisted columns, beginning and ending with turned and gilded wood bases and dampers.
The table's belt repeats the cabinet's trompe-l'oeil decoration (in wood and red tortoiseshell).
At the junction of the table and cabinet, an inlaid wood shelf stands out, highlighted with bone fillets and a radiating star at its center.

The 17th century, the golden age of Holland and the Low Countries, saw the development of the fine and decorative arts. Ports such as Ghent, Antwerp and Bruges grew in importance and became major transit zones. Trade in works of art, handicrafts and imported luxury goods became very important.
From 1625 onwards, Antwerp cabinetmakers became more innovative and excelled in the execution of these cabinets. These pieces of furniture were intended for the local market of bourgeois, wealthy merchants and aristocrats, as well as for the export market.

17th-century Antwerp work.
The base and shelf are 19th century, with later locks and keys.

Height: 172 cm.
Width: 129 cm.
Depth: 48 cm.

Ref: JJO8PJS7WA