A Louis XV/XVI transitional ormolu mounted tulipwood secretaire by RVLC

Rare and elegant secretary of elliptical shape, veneered on all sides of rosewood with herringbone decoration.
It opens on the front with two sliding slatted curtains revealing interior compartments on two levels entirely veneered with rosewood and three rows of drawers.
The lower drawer serves as an extra writing desk thanks to a leather-trimmed tray that unfolds. It opens from the front with a drawer and also has a side drawer that can be opened by a secret mechanism integrated into the front pull button.
The top of the cabinet consists of a Breccia Aleppo marble top partly surrounded by a gilded bronze ingot mold
Our secretary stands on 4 curved legs joined by a crotch tablet adorned with a gilded and pierced brass gallery.
Beautiful ornamentation of gilded and chiseled bronze including the falls at the angles, the mounts and the hooves of the feet, an apron on the front.

Louis XV Louis XVI Transition Period
Excellent original condition.
Stamped RVLC, for Roger Vandercruse dit Lacroix, cabinetmaker received master in Paris on February 6, 1755.
Dimensions:
Height: 114 cm; Width: 84 cm; Depth: 41 cm

The conception of our piece of furniture with its unique design is entirely due to the innovative and creative spirit of one of the greatest French cabinetmakers Roger Vandercruse dit Lacroix.
Imagining furniture whose utility is sidelined by favoring artistic creativity, the cabinetmaker designed furniture in the same way as works of art are conceived.
A piece of furniture such as ours, obviously allowing additional use, had above all a presentation role in an interior of the nobility such as an object of art, a sculpture or a painting. It is through this strong aesthetic potential that Lacroix sought to distinguish these pieces and this is the case with our exceptional secretary.
A model comparable to ours, but in a larger format, is kept at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, also produced by Lacroix. (around 1770, Inv. PE 1511).
For a very similar model:
• the secretary with the RVLC stamp, illustrated p. 797, Pierre Kjellberg "French furniture of the 18th century"
• the unsigned secretary, attributed to RVLC, Sotheby's Paris public sale, 04/16/2013, lot no. 137 (the crotch shelf is missing)
• the secretary stamped RVLC, public sale, Paris, Génin, Lesnil and Rambert, March 18, 1990