This unusual set of pieces (wardrobe and two-tiered buffet) is a one of a kind example of custom furniture commissioned in upper Normandy circa 1700. It is exceedingly rare to find contiguous suites that have passed through centuries of inheritances unseparated. It is also surprising to find pieces of this degree of eccentricity. Both the armoire and the buffet defy all examples of such regional furniture published or conserved in Norman museums. Although several traits reveal their Norman origin, they are the result of a rarely seen level of customization making them complicated to date and place precisely.

The convex multipoint stars on each door are as eye catching as they are original. They are centered around quadrilobe motifs which are more typical to the period of around 1700. The heart shaped key escutcheons are a small detail which is, however, unique enough to the Manche region of upper Normandy.

Curiously, the sides of both pieces are decorated with a gothic style linenfold motif, which was employed in Normandy much later than in other regions. The overlapping of different period motifs makes dating these pieces precisely rather difficult (as is often the case with pieces produced far from the capital). It is safe to say that they predate the middle of the 18th century, but it is possible that they are from the final quarter of the 17th century. 1675-1750 seems like a wide spectrum but one that may be more specific than one could hope for pieces that are so without comparison.

It is perhaps the inner locking mechanisms and specialized keys which testify most to the overall quality of these pieces. Each cabinet opens by large trèfle locks with trefoil keys (the shape of a clover or a club hollowed down the column of the keys). Such locks and keys are typical of smaller high quality pieces typically of Parisian late 18th and early 19th century manufacture. Finding such large trefoil locks, having still conserved their unusually large keys, on relatively early rural pieces is exceptional.

There were several orders of King Louis XIV which used the 8 pointed star as its symbol. These smaller stars, perhaps Maltese crosses, appear alongside the carved hearts on both the armoire and the buffet à deux corps. This drives the logical supposition that such furniture was commissioned by a local nobleman, perhaps as was the tradition, for a wedding gift (hearts) for his soon to be married daughter.

These pieces will not be sold separately.

H: 7ft 10 inches. L: 61.5 inches. D: 29.5 inches.

Myers & Monroe, LLC