A Louis XV style ormolu-mounted tulipwood, amaranth, satinwood and marquetry lady's writing table By Alfred Beurdeley, Paris, last quarter 19th century Of serpentine outline, the sliding top inlaid with monkeys, dancing and playing musical instruments, and with musical trophies within floral trelliswork, the frieze drawer with a fitted slide and covered compartments, stamped to the underside A BEURDELEY A PARIS Measures: 29 1/2in. (75cm.) high; 21 1/4in. (54cm.) wide: 13 1/4in. (34cm.) deep The marquetry scene on the top of this writing table derives from engravings published in Paris in the mid-eighteenth century entitled Le Tambour de Basque and Le Tambourin by J. Guelard after designs by Christophe Huet (d.1759). In 1875, Alfred-Emmanuel Beurdeley (1847-1919) was at first assistant to and later succeeded his father Louis-Auguste Beurdeley, one of the main cabinet-makers of the Second Empire, specialising in XVIIIth century furniture. Louis-Auguste was the star whenever he exhibited and was “most favored by the royal and imperial families”. Although he produced the same kind of works of art as his father, Alfred Beurdeley was also a very well-known art collector and a skilled bronze sculptor. With Dasson, Grohé, Sauvresy and Fourdinois, the most famous artists of the period, he took part in the 1878 Universal Exhibition and won the gold medal. Crowned with glory he went so far as to open a shop in New York. His participation in the 1883 Amsterdam Universal Exhibition drew considerable attention to his work and “Alfred Beurdeley, Fabricant de bronzes d’art” was then awarded the Ordre National de la Legion d’Honneur, France’s hightest official mark of recognition. He thus won the respect of both the government and contemporary art critics. His last presentation was during the 1889 Universal and International Exhibition, when the director of the Exhibition wrote in his report : “The talent of Mr Beurdeley is self evident when one inspects his furniture.