Chest of Drawers (commode)

Designer Jean-Mathieu Chevallier l'aîné (French, ca. 1694 - 1768; master 1743)

Datemid-18th century

MediumKingswood, rosewood, boxwood, oak, and other woods, marble, and gilt bronze (ormolu)

Dimensions.1 (commode): 32 1/2 × 43 7/8 × 22 1/2 inches (82.55 × 111.44 × 57.15 cm)
.2 (marble top): 1 1/8 × 43 7/8 × 22 1/8 inches (2.86 × 111.44 × 56.2 cm)

Credit LineGift of Sandor Kvassay

Object number2021.33.1,2

MarkingsStamped on top of the carcase above proper left back leg: “JME” (Jurande Menusiers Ébénistes]/“M.CHEVALLIER” [maître ébéniste Jean-Mathieu Chevallier (1694-1768, maître March 5, 1743], top of proper back leg

On View

Not on view

Collections

Architecture, Design and Decorative Arts

Terms

DescriptionDouble-bowed front and sides, with two drawers; inlaid with floral marquetry veneers; gilt bronze (ormolu) mounts; with a marble topProvenance

Provenance

With Galerie Jean Wanecq, Paris, by June 1984;

Sold June 28, 1984 to Sandor (Alex) Kvassay (American, born Hungary, 1926–2024), Scottsdale, AZ (formerly Wichita, KS); [1]

His gift to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2021

NOTES:

[1.] Invoice, Jean Wanecq, Paris to Sandor Kvassy, June 28, 1984. Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Curatorial Files. The son of a diplomat who trained in military intelligence in his native Hungary, Sandor (Alex) Kvassay emigrated to the United States in 1948 and became a citizen in 1952. He became involved in the burgeoning aviation industry centered in Wichita, Kansas, in the early 1950s, becoming vice-president of international marketing for Lear Jet Corporation for over 30 years. “International Business Aircraft Salesman Alex Kvassay Dies at 97,” Aviation Week, November 20, 2024 (https://aviationweek.com/business-aviation/aircraft-propulsion/international-business-aircraft-salesman-alex-kvassay-dies-97). Galerie Jean Wanecq was founded in Paris in 1950.

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