Restoration of a period chest of drawers Transition. Built from fir and oak, it is veneered with rosewood and violet wood, with a Greek-style frieze of green-stained hornbeam stringing. The sides are veneered with satinwood and violet wood.
André-Antoine Lardin (1724 – August 10, 1790) received his master craftsman's certificate on July 1, 1750. He set up shop on the rue de Charenton, under the sign "Au Bois de Boulogne." He worked there until 1770, then moved to the rue Saint-Nicolas. His output was considerable. His furniture, in all styles (Louis XIV, Regency, Louis XV, Transition, Louis XVI), is exquisitely crafted, with classical forms and decoration. In addition to secretaries, desks, tables, and chiffoniers, he produced an impressive number of commodes. These are veneered with rosewood or violet wood of exceptional quality, in leaf or butterfly patterns, within dark palisander frames. A distinctive feature: Lardin stamped his mark in very large letters, with energy, in several places on the same piece of furniture. His two sons, André-Antoine II and Louis François, collaborated with him, and it was Louis François who succeeded him on rue Saint Nicolas.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- French Furniture of the 18th Century – Pierre Kjellberg – Les Editions de l'Amateur – 2008
State report
This chest of drawers was not in very bad condition. Apart from a few missing veneer pieces, the structure was sound. The sides were slightly cracked, but nothing serious. There were a few old repairs that only needed staining and restoration of the grain through color matching.
The Restoration
The restoration therefore consisted of replacing the missing pieces with new veneer that was sawn, scraped, sanded, and cut to the correct thickness before gluing. We treated the drawer fronts and sides by infiltrating the glue to rehydrate and regenerate the old adhesive.
Next, we oxidized the grafts, lightly sanded the old varnish, then reworked it with colorless French polish.
To see previous restorations : https://ebenisterie-mathieuvath.fr/en-ce-moment-a-latelier/
