Marcion, Commodus From Egypt, Stamped. Empire-consulate Period.

A superb Empire-Consulate period commode stamped by Pierre-Benoît Marcion, crafted from mahogany and flame mahogany veneer, topped with a black granite slab. It features three wide drawers with lion's head handles securing a ring.
On either side, the tapered uprights each support a finely chased gilt-bronze mount comprising a bust of an Egyptian wearing a nemes headdress, a large palmette, and a smaller one near the molded base.
The base rests on two front claw feet and rear feet with superimposed balls.

A similar model was delivered by Marcion to the Palace of Versailles, where it was still listed in the inventory in 1839. It is currently held at the Mobilier National (National Furniture Collection) under the number GME 4506.

In very good condition. A small crack in the veneer on the right side.
Empire period, Egyptian Revival.
Stamped P. Marcion

Pierre-Benoît Marcion (1769-1840) was one of Napoleon I's principal suppliers. From the Directory period onward, he ran a cabinetmaking workshop and store on Rue Neuve-des-Petits-Champs, near Rue Chabanais, called "Aux Égyptiens" (At the Egyptians), and placed advertisements inviting the public to view his "selection of period furniture, in mahogany, richly ornamented with bronze, based on the beautiful forms of Etruscan, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman antiquities."
His business having grown in importance, it soon moved to Rue Helvétius (formerly Rue Sainte-Anne), and then to Rue Saint-Marc. In 1806, Marcion submitted bids to the Garde-Meuble (Royal Furniture Repository) for the supply of boat beds, sofas, bergère chairs and armchairs with winged figures, chairs with "saber sheath" legs, cheval mirrors, tripod washbasins, nightstands, and other pieces.
He was commissioned to create numerous works for the palaces of Saint-Cloud, Trianon, Compiègne, Fontainebleau, and Rambouillet. One of his most significant works was the bed for Empress Marie-Louise, which he completed in 1809. This bed, crafted entirely from gilded walnut, featured exquisite carvings of swans, garlands, and scrolling foliage; it was complemented by two torchères bearing kneeling figures that supported the draperies of the canopy.
Marcion was also entrusted with considerable work for the service of ministers and high-ranking officers of the Crown. A victim of the crisis that plagued French industry during the final years of Napoleon's reign, this cabinetmaker went bankrupt in 1814. The State collections contain several pieces bearing the stamp of P. MARCION.

Bibliography:
"Marcion, Cabinetmaker to Napoleon," Jean-Pierre Planchon, Monelle Hayot Publishers.

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