Original Price: £15,000 | Special Offer: £5,000

Currently in unrestored original condition, please contact us for further information.

A Superb Regency Period  Secretaire à Abattant
By S. Jamar

Constructed from beautifully figured bookmatched rosewood and decorated with striking neoclassical ormolu mounts, the secretaire supported on bun feet to the front, with cylindrical columns to the corners carrying the entablature with figural mounts; the central fall-front panel underneath opening to reveal a leather writing surface, an arrangement of five burr-veneered drawers and an arcaded shelf with paired columns; the lower section fitted with three lockable drawers. Signed in the brass "S. Jamar / French Cabinetmaker / 29 Wardour Street Soho."
English, circa 1820

Noteworthy features typical of S. Jamar are the central mount on the frieze which equally appears on a secretaire on the market in 2007, while the figural corner mounts appear on a rosewood commode by Jamar, last sold in New York in 1993. The carved oblate bun feet are similarly seen on documented Jamar furniture.

Dimensions: H: 59 in / 150 cm  |  W: 42 in / 107 cm  |  D: 18 in / 46 cm

S. Jamar

S. Jamar created and crafted furniture in a confident French Empire style, indicating a probable upbringing or training on the Continent. By 1819, he was situated at 29 Wardour Street, Soho, where he proudly promoted his pieces as being "equal to any made in Paris." Despite conducting a successful business in London, his nationality remains unknown. A lock plate on another closely related drop-front secretaire was engraved with 'S Jamar Cabinet Maker to Louis Bonaparte King of Holland,' a possible clue to his origins. He often combined figured rosewood with refined gilt bronze ornament.