A Transitional chest of drawers for Marly

12/5/25 - Acquisition - Marly-le-Roi, Musée du Domaine royal de Marly - Was this a suggestion for presentation, or simply a wink? The hanging of the "highlights" exhibition at the Hôtel Drouot last March was full of innuendo: the dish from the "celestial blue" service of King Louis XV, preempted by the Château de Versailles (see the news item of 30/4/25), sat on a Transition chest of drawers to which we could only wish the same fate! Heritage lovers were not disappointed: very well represented in the room, the Musée de Marly was able to exercise its right of preemption for this fine piece of furniture, which sold for €49,000 at the hammer [1] at Ader Nordmann & Dominique on 30 April at Hôtel Drouot. Although such an outcome was of course hoped for, nothing was guaranteed, given the museum’s modest resources, which were nevertheless able to count on an exceptional level of support: several dozen donors joined forces for the occasion to take part in an effective fundraising campaign, which made particularly good progress despite being launched a fortnight before the sale!

1.The large platter preempted by the Château de Versailles displayed on the chest of drawers preempted by the Musée de Marly at Hôtel Drouot in March 2025.
Photo: Alexandre Lafore

See the image in its page

Supported by the Amis du domaine de Marly, this fundraising campaign, which certainly made people break out in a cold sweat - it’s hardly advisable to announce oneself before a preemption - was very successful and can still be supplemented to cover the costs of the sale. Although the piece of furniture is in very good condition, it will undoubtedly require some restoration work. Perfectly studied by the expert Pierre-François Dayot, this piece of furniture was delivered by the cabinetmaker Gilles Joubert to the Garde-Meuble de la Couronne on 27 May 1771 for the flats of the Count and Countess of Provence at the Château de Marly. The auction house’s notice pays tribute to…