Jean-Henri Riesener

Furniture by one of the greatest cabinet-makers of the eighteenth century

Riesener in the Royal Collection

      The sale of royal and aristocratic property during the French Revolution made it newly possible for English collectors to acquire pieces by the best eighteenth-century French cabinet-makers. George IV was the first of the celebrated collectors of Riesener furniture. It is unclear whether he acquired the pieces for their historical associations with the Court of Louis XVI, or for the magnificence of their gilt-bronze mounts and marquetry. 

      Photograph of some of the furniture in the Queen's Presence Chamber, Windsor Castle: large jewel cabinet by Riesener (RCIN 31207) with canopy above, a large chinese porcelain jar on floor and candle stand (RCIN 33389) with figurative c
      Presence Chamber, anno 1880. Specimens of present Furniture
      A design for the elevation of the north wall, the panelled walls decorated in crimson and framed with a gold moulding, a Louis XVI bureau à cylindre in centre. Numbered "14" on mount. Sotheby's lot 171. On shared mount sheet with RCIN 918382.
      Design for the north elevation of His Majesty's Sitting Room, Room 200, Windsor Castle, c.1826.
      George IV as the Prince of Wales, 1796
      John Hoppner (1758-1810), 'George IV (1762-1830), when Prince of Wales', c. 1796, oil on canvas, 240.0 x 148.6 cm. (RCIN 405412)
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