A FRENCH GILT-BRONZE MOUNTED TULIPWOOD VITRINE, BY FRANÇOIS LINKE, CIRCA 1900

The present vitrine is undoubtedly an example of the vast successful oeuvre of Francois Linke and incorporates various elements that he executed for comparable vitrines. The closest model for this vitrine seems to have been referred by Linke as index number 38 (Payne, François Linke, 1855-1946 - The Belle Epoque of French Furniture, Woodbridge, 2003, p. 473).

Indeed, similar to the drawing for index no. 38 in Linke's daybook, the present vitrine features a frieze mount at the top as well as a roundel mount at the bottom of the door. Related examples of the same index number and signed Linke were sold at Sotheby's New York, 26 October 2006, lot 49 ($30,000) and another at Christie's New York, 20 April 2005, lot 180 ($28,800).

François Linke (1855-1946)

Linke, born on 17th June 1855 in the small village of Pankraz, was perhaps the most important Parisian ébéniste operating in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early years of the 20th century. First trained in Czech Republic, he moved to Paris in 1875 and set up an independent workshop at 170, Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Antoine in 1881, and later on at 26, place Vendôme.

Linke's business thrived and his workshops produced luxurious furniture of the very highest quality and utilised the very best of materials. His work was in demand by a wealthy client base from around the world - this fame coming, in part, through his very successful representation at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris for which he received the gold medal from the jury. He exhibited at the World’s Fair in St. Louis in 1904 and in other parts of the world including South America. He flourished and remained active until the middle years of the 1930s and died in 1946. In 1906, in recognition of his great success and talent in design, he was awarded the highest distinction of France, the Croix de la Legion d'Honneur.