Jean-Henri Riesener
Furniture by one of the greatest cabinet-makers of the eighteenth century
Roll top desk
1774Oak, mahogany, conifer, purplewood, satiné, tulipwood, stained woods, burr wood, ebony or ebonised wood, box, gilt bronze | 132.1 x 137.1 x 76.3 cm | 2576
When he reached his majority in 1771, Louis XVI’s younger brother, the comte de Provence, was granted his own apartments at Versailles, which overlooked the Parterre d’Eau. Three years later, Riesener delivered this sumptuous roll top desk to the apartments. The marquetry plaques that decorate the top of the desk, which include trophies of Poetry and Learning, testify to the prince’s intellectual pursuits.
Digital model
3D visualisation of the object