vintage french empire style painted console table mid 20th century

This is a beautiful vintage French Empire style painted gilded and ormolu mounted console table, Mid 20th century in date.

The rectangular faux marble top with an ormolu plaque to thefriezeabove a pair of classical carved gilt Egyptian pharaohfigure supports and a panelled back plate on a shaped plinth base.
This gorgeous console table will instantly enhance the style of one special room in your home and is sure to receive the maximum amount of attention wherever it is placed.
Condition: In excellent condition having been beautifully cleaned, polished and waxed in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation.Dimensions in cm:Height 88 x Width 124 x Depth 53Dimensions in inches:Height 2 foot, 11 inches x Width 4 feet, 1 inch x Depth 1 foot, 9 inches
Our reference: A1897
Empire style ,is an early-19th-centurydesignmovement inarchitecture,furniture, otherdecorative arts, and thevisual artsfollowed in Europe and America until around 1830.The style originated in and takes its name from the rule ofNapoleon Iin theFirst French Empire, where it was intended to idealize Napoleon's leadership and the French state. The style corresponds to theBiedermeierstyle in the German-speaking lands,Federal stylein the United States and to theRegency stylein Britain. The previous style was calledLouis XVI style, in France.The Empire style was based on aspects of the Roman Empire. It is the second phase of neoclassicism which is also called "Directoire", after a goverment system.
Furniture typically had symbols and ornaments borrowed from the glorious ancient Greek and Roman empires.The furniture was made from heavy woods such asmahoganyandebony, imported from the colonies, with dark finishes often with decorative bronze mounts. Marble tops were popular as were Egyptian motifs like sphinxes, griffins, urns and eagles and the Napoleonic symbols, the eagle, the bee, the initials "I" and a large "N."
Gilded bronze (ormolu) details displayed a high level of craftsmanship.Ormolu -(from French 'or moulu', signifying ground or pounded gold) is an 18th-century English term for applying finely ground, high-caratgoldin amercuryamalgamto an object ofbronze.The mercury is driven off in akilnleaving behind a gold-coloured veneerknown as'gilt bronze'.The manufacture of true ormolu employs a process known as mercury-gilding orfire-gilding, in which a solution ofnitrate of mercuryis applied to a piece ofcopper,brass, or bronze, followed by the application of anamalgamof gold and mercury. The item was then exposed to extreme heat until the mercury burned off and the gold remained, adhered to the metal object.No true ormolu was produced in France after around 1830 because legislation had outlawed the use of mercury. Therefore, other techniques were used instead but nothing surpasses the original mercury-firing ormolu method for sheer beauty and richness of colour.Electroplatingis the most common modern technique. Ormolu techniques are essentially the same as those used onsilver, to producesilver-gilt(also known asvermeil).

Antiques.co.uk Ref: CQQV5GC8F

Width (cm):

124

Height (cm):

88

Depth (cm):

53

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