Although furniture in the gothic style is common near the end of the 19th century, this piece exemplifies the rarer and much finer mid-19th century luxury production of such neo-gothic pieces. This dressoir is an interesting instance of a 19th century stylistic revival actually surpassing in sophistication and flair the original style itself. Instead of a poorly executed copy or a clumsy, machine made, reinterpretation of an earlier style, this piece masterfully pushes the original 15th century high gothic aesthetic to the height of its potential. This piece was surely custom ordered for an elaborate neo-gothic interior of the mid 1800s, which likely no longer exists.

The quality of this piece is part of what would make one logically date it to an earlier part of the 19th century, i.e. the 1840s-1860s, as it ressembles in refinement the set of furniture recorded in a famous painting by Prosper Lafaye of Princesse Marie d’Orléans’s salon in the Tuileries Palace. This three meter towering example of a style revival is dated closer to the romantic period of the first half of the 19th century. It’s sublimity and overwhelming decor does in fact evoke a romantic and grand past that no doubt surpasses the reality of what life was like during the true gothic period.

Image three is of a 19th century neo-gothic interior which illustrates how the complete space was more the work of art, than this wonderful piece which we nevertheless appreciate today divorced from its original surroundings. The gothic style is one of the most sophisticated and original in history, as it is in fact anti-classical, essentially devoid of influence from the art of Ancient Rome/Greece/Egypt.