Beschreibung:

Attributed to the workshop of Alfred-Emmanuel-Louis Beurdeley (French, 1808-1882): A pair of late 19th French gilt bronze mounted Algerian onyx and rose marble pedestals circa 1870 each of Corinthian column form with fixed moulded square plateau tops, on laurel wreath cast and square stepped foliate bases, 110cm high (2) Fußnoten Provenance: Property of a Gentleman Collector For comparable pedestals from the workshop of Alfred-Emmanuel-Louis Beurdeley, see the four pedestals in the permanent collection at the Wallace Collection. The pedestals are listed in the online inventory of the Wallace and are situated in the Porphyry court and comprise F448 & F449, described as being made of 'granite and gilt bronze' and measuring 137cm high, F289, described as being made of 'porphyry, gilt bronze and stone veneered verde antico' and measuring 125.4cm high and F290, described as being made of 'porphyry, gilt bronze, steel screw, lead sheets and stone veneered with verde antico marble' measuring 126cm high Alfred-Emmanuel-Louis Beurdeley was a second-generation Parisian cabinetmaker who specialised in the manufacture of luxurious French furnishings. He was much admired for his 19th century interpretations of Louis XV and XVI designs which he brought into full production after his father Jean's death in 1853, winning medals at the 1855 and the 1867 Expositions Universelles in Paris. Louis-Auguste-Alfred Beurdeley began his career working alongside his father and became the successor to his family's highly prosperous furniture making business in 1875. Already specialising in high quality 18th century revivals Louis-Auguste-Alfred capitalised on the firm's success to produce ever more extravagant pieces which attracted the attention of Paris's wealthy buyers who were eager to furnish their town houses and estates with copies of the rarest and most important French furniture and furnishing in the style of the golden age. In 1870 he exhibited works at the Paris International Exposition. Continuing to exhibit throughout the 1880's he achieved the his most prestigious award at the Paris exhibition of 1889 seven years after his father's death. However, in 1895 he closed the company and its flagship Paris shop to concentrate on amassing a collection of the finest antique 18th century French furniture and furnishings. Although spending the rest of his life in seclusion, the youngest of the Beurdeley furniture making dynasty made an indelible mark on the history of 19th century furnishings producing works that were the finest of his generation and in some cases were arguably equal to the originals that they copied.