Restoration of a Louis XV commode, stamped by Nicolas Alexandre Lapie, veneered in amaranth and satinwood on a beautifully crafted oak frame. The sides and drawer fronts are made of softwood, and the marble top is Campan griotte marble.
Nicolas Alexandre Lapie
The son of Nicolas Lapie, a pottery merchant in the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, and brother of master cabinetmaker Jean Lapie, Nicolas Alexandre (known as the Elder) appears to have been born around 1730. He registered his master's letters at the Châtelet in Paris on August 17, 1764. His workshop was located on the rue de Charenton. But his career was short, lasting only eleven years.
The official record of the seals affixed to his home after his death on February 8, 1775, located above his workshop on rue de Charenton, mentions that among the pieces he left unfinished were about twenty small tables known as ragpickers were present, as well as several chests of drawers and various small pieces of Louis XV, Transition or Louis XVI furniture, of classical type, covered with leaf veneer or marquetry.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- French Furniture of the 18th Century – Pierre Kjellberg – Les Editions de l'Amateur – 1989
- The workshops Parisian cabinetmakers and joiners in the 17th and 18th centuries – Guillaume Janneau – Serg Editions – 1975
