French Empire Revival Ormolu Mounted Armchairs, 19th Century, Set of 2

This is a fantastic and highly decorative antique pair of French gilt bronze mounted Empire Revival fauteuil armchairs, circa 1870 in date. They have been crafted from fabulous solid mahogany and are smothered in fabulous high quality ormolu mounts reminiscent of the Empire style with Egyptian motifs and Napoleonic symbols. The arms terminating in anthemion roundels, standing on elegant tapering legs that terminate in ormolu feet and upholstered in a fabulous silk fabric Add elegance to your home with this exceptional pair of armchairs. The items are not CITES pursuant. Condition: In excellent condition having been beautifully cleaned, polished and reupholstered in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation. Dimensions in cm: Height 97 x Width 69 x Depth 58 Dimensions in inches: Height 3 foot, 2 inches x Width 2 foot, 3 inches x Depth 1 foot, 11 inches Mahogany is probably one of the largest ‘families’ of hardwood, having many different varieties within its own species. Mahogany has been used for centuries in ship building, house building, furniture making etc and is the core structure of just about every 19th century vanity box, dressing case or jewellery box. It became more of a Victorian trend to dress Mahogany with these decorative veneers, such as Burr Walnut and Coromandel, so that the actual Mahogany was almost hidden from view. Mahogany itself is a rich reddish brown wood that can range from being plain in appearance to something that is so vibrant, figured and almost three dimensional in effect. Although Mahogany was most often used in its solid form, it also provided some beautifully figured varieties of veneer like ‘Flame’ Mahogany and ‘Fiddleback’ Mahogany (named after its preferred use in the manufacture of fine musical instruments). Cuban Mahogany was so sought after that by the late 1850’s, this particular variety became all but extinct. Empire style, is an early-19th-century design movement in architecture, furniture, other decorative arts, and the visual arts followed in Europe and America until around 1830. The style originated in and takes its name from the rule of Napoleon I in the First French Empire, where it was intended to idealize Napoleon’s leadership and the French state. The style corresponds to the Biedermeier style in the German-speaking lands, Federal style in the United States and to the Regency style in Britain. The previous style was called Louis 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 government system. Furniture typically had symbols and ornaments borrowed from the glorious ancient Greek and Roman empires. The furniture was made from heavy woods such as mahogany and ebony, 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.