Photography — SG-FR-003
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Stitt Gallery · SG-FR-003 · France 🇫🇷
The Piece
An antique French writing table — table à écrire — in the Louis XVI taste, veneered in mahogany with a geometric cube-parquetry top of trompe-l'œil precision. A pierced, heart-shaped three-quarter gallery crowns the top, both decorative and practical, keeping papers and objects secure. A genuine antique occasional table — or guéridon — equally at home as a side table, lamp table or bedside table.
The antique table stands on slender tapering legs joined by a shaped stretcher centred with a brass basket — a charming period detail for papers or needlework. Fine antique French furniture of this scale is endlessly placeable: a writing table in a study, a side table beside a bergère, or a lamp table in a drawing room or bedroom.
The piece is unstamped and is catalogued by style — antique French, in the Louis XVI manner, with neoclassical ormolu-mounted detailing. The marquetry parquetry and gilt-brass mounts are well preserved with an honest, age-appropriate patina throughout.
Specifications
| Style | Antique French, Louis XVI style — Table à Écrire (Writing / Side Table) |
| Period | Antique, Louis XVI style, France |
| Height | 88.5 cm |
| Width | 65 cm |
| Depth | 51 cm |
| Top | Cube parquetry in mahogany Heart-shaped pierced three-quarter gallery |
| Mounts | Brass gallery & basket stretcher Tapering legs |
| Structure | Mahogany veneer, parquetry inlay Shaped stretcher with brass basket |
| Marks | None Attribution by style |
Photography — SG-FR-003
Construction & Detail
The top is laid in cube parquetry — a geometric trompe-l'œil inlay of contrasting woods producing a three-dimensional cube effect — within crossbanded borders. Inlay is well preserved, with no lifting or losses.
A gallery is the low raised rail around a tabletop edge — on a table à écrire it earned its keep every day, keeping papers, pens and inkwells from sliding off, while giving the metalworker a place to show his art. Here the rail is hand-pierced with a repeating heart fretwork, lightening the brass to lace. Such galleries are often found bent, cracked or resoldered; this one is complete, level and undamaged, the piercing crisp throughout. Below, the legs are joined by a shaped stretcher centred with a brass basket — for papers or needlework — all mounts present with a warm, unrestored patina.
Mahogany-veneered top and frieze on slender tapering legs. Stable and level, with honest age-appropriate wear consistent with use as a writing and occasional table.
Market Position
Specialist Retail
€900–1,300
≈ 3,860–5,580 PLNEuropean dealer level (Proantic / Vinterior / 1stDibs EU)
Fair Market
€550–750
≈ 2,360–3,220 PLNVerified comparable sales (Pamono, French dealers)
Insurance Value
€1,800
≈ 7,720 PLNReplacement cost
Piece is unstamped — attribution by style, Louis XVI taste. Price on application; shipping & handling quoted separately by destination.
This piece forms part of our collection of European and Asian antiques available at Stitt Gallery, Poznań.
€850
International price. Shipping & handling not included — quoted separately by destination.
This piece is available for private sale. We welcome enquiries from collectors, interior specialists and institutions. Viewing by appointment in Poznań. Shipping & handling arranged worldwide, quoted separately per destination.
Gallery reference: SG-FR-003 · stittgallery.com
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