Sloping Desk, Louis XV, 18th Century

A key piece of furniture from the reign of Louis XV, the bureau de pente is one of the masterpieces of 18th-century French cabinetmaking. Now called a dos d'âne desk, the bureau de pente was better known in the 18th century as a tombeau desk or a broken-top desk. Probably appearing around 1730, a period during which it enjoyed considerable success, it barely survived the death of King Louis XV. It served as a living room or boudoir piece of furniture. Specifically feminine, it has a sloping top that folds down to form a writing desk and is furnished with a paper clip, small shelves for filing papers. The first ones, a little heavy in shape, had boxes on the sides. Over time, the boxes disappeared, the lines became lighter, the flap, initially steeply inclined, lowered and became curved. The Desk that we offer you can be dated around 1750, probably a Command Furniture. It is in Marquetry of Violet Wood and Rosewood. It opens on the front with 3 drawers and an inclined flap, inside we discover a Writing Desk with its old green leather, gilded with small iron, paper-holding shelves, two drawers on each side, and a large trapdoor which serves as a hiding place. It rests on 4 slightly arched legs fitted with closed clogs in gilded bronze. We have not found a stamp but it was made by a Great Cabinetmaker It measures 92 CM in Length, 49 CM in Depth The Height of the back of the furniture is 80 CM and 65 CM at the front. Height of the flap Open for writing: 62 CM. It is in very good condition.