A bureau plat by Henri Jacob
Mahogany and ebony veneer on oak corpus, bronze and brass mountings, replaced leather writing surface. Angular apron with a central drawer flanked by two faux drawers. With two drawers on the left and a double-drawer on the right with a covered compartment on the interior. Two drop leaves can be extended on either side. Stamped in the centre of the right apron "H.JACOB" and "JME". In very good restored condition. H 77.5, W 159, D 78 cm.
Paris, Henri Jacob, late 18th / early 19th C.
Henri Jacob (1753 - 1824) completed an apprenticeship with his famous cousin, the ebenist Georges Jacob, after the death of his father. Thanks to his talent and the quality of his work, but also thanks to his name, he quickly enjoyed great fame in Paris. He modelled himself on the work of Georges Jacob and copied his furniture in order to sell it under his own name. From 1785 he received commissions from the court. His best works, however, came from the Consulate and Directoire periods, mostly in mahogany with carved relief decorations. Around 1800 he was heavily in debt and had to sell large batches of his furniture at the behest of the bailiff; in 1806 he went bankrupt and his house was sold to the imperial tapestry maker Andry.
Literature
For more on this maker see Ledoux-Lebard, Le mobilier français du XIXe siècle, Paris 3/2000, p. 367 ff.
Cf. also Kjellberg, Le mobilier français du XVIIIe siècle, Paris 2008, p. 475 ff.