A fine Louis XVI ormolu-mounted mahogany mechanical coiffeuse Jean-François...

A fine Louis XVI ormolu-mounted mahogany mechanical coiffeuse

Jean-François Leleu (french, 1729-1807), circa 1775

The circular sliding top enclosing a hidden compartment housing a hinged mirror, a cubby hole, and three secret drawers, raised on a fluted baluster pedestal above four outswept feet applied with fine ormolu strapwork; stamped "J*F*LELEU" and with JME stamp.

H: 29 1/2, Dia: 20 3/8 in.

PROVENANCE:

The collection of Georges Perrier, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Jean-François Leleu (French, 1729-1807), a noted ébéniste, was known, even among his contemporaries, as distinguished for his "charming and graceful works, marked by their finesse..." (Jean Nicolay, L'Art et la manière des maîtres ébénistes français au XVIIIe siècle [Paris: Pygmalion, 1982], p. 274).

Leleu apprenticed with Jean-François Oeben (German/French, 1721-1763), and after his master's death took the workshop's lead and earned his maîtrise in 1764. Leleu's clients included both the Prince de Condé and Madame du Barry.

The offered lot is perhaps exceptional within the master's oeuvres, because metamorphic examples by Leleu are rare. A small scale homage to works by David Roentgen and Leleu's own master, Oeben, what appears to be a fine candlestand, by the use of two discreet hooks, is converted into a small poudreuse with mirror, and several secret compartments.