surmounted by a brèche d'Alep marble top, fitted with three frieze drawers above two long drawers, two locks have been removed to reveal the CT Linke stamp and one bronze mount has been removed to reveal the FL mark from the bronze master model

Pierre Kjellberg, Le Mobilier Français du XVIIIe Siècle, 2002, p. 738, for an illustration of the 18th century model, circa 1774, supplied by Riesener for Louis XVI's Cabinet de Retraite at Fontainebleau
Daniel Meyer, Versailles Furniture of the Royal Place: 17th and 18th Centuries, Vol. I, p. 136, for a discussion of the 18th century model by Riesener

Overall in good condition and presentation with the usual minor hairline scratches and minute nicks to veneers and carcass consistent with age and use. Tarnishing to gilt-bronze in places also consistent with age and atmospheric conditions through the years. The marble with the usual minute chips to edges, light scratches to surface consistent with age and use, due to placing object on top. Two visible restored breaks running from front to back with visible traces of fillers. Four keys present. We would advise the buyer to wax and French polish the veneers to nourish the wood and bring back the former color to this piece of furniture.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The very fine nature morte marquetry panel exactly follows the design of the original found on the commode executed in 1778 by Jean-Henri Riesener (maître en 1768) for the cabinet de retraite of King Louis XVI at the Château de Fontainebleau, later moved to the King's bibliothèque at the Château de Versailles. The original commode was acquired in the early 19th century by Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 10th Duke of Hamilton, and was later owned by the Barons Nathaniel and Albert von Rothschild. It is now in the permanent collection of the Château de Fontainebleau.

Franҫois Linke (1855-1946) was undoubtedly the most important Parisian ébéniste of his time. Having served an apprenticeship in his home town of Pankraz, Bohemia, Linke arrived in Paris in 1875 and set up independent workshops at 170, Rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine in 1881 and later also at 26, Place Vendôme. By the time of the 1900 Paris Exposition Universelle, Linke's worldwide reputation as a master of high individualism and inventiveness was already established and unmatched by his contemporaries. His success at the 1900 exhibition afforded Linke a high degree of financial stability and allowed him to pursue new markets by exhibiting at subsequent international fairs. Like the inventories of contemporaries such as Beurdeley and Dasson, Linke's oeuvre included copies and adaptations of the distinct styles of eighteenth century important and royal French furniture. However his most extravagant exhibition pieces combined the Louis XV style with the new Art Nouveau style. Linke's frequent collaborator for his designs was the celebrated sculptor Léon Messagé.  In 1904, he was made Officier de L’ Iinstruction Publique, and in 1905 he was called to be a member of the Jury of the Liège exhibition.  Following his stands in the St- Louis (U.S.A.) exhibition in 1904 and the Liège exhibition in 1905, Linke was decorated with the highest distinction of France, the Croix de la Légion d’Honneur, on October 11, 1906.