Neoclassical Style Faux-Bamboo Bronze Gueridon with Chinese Lacquer Top by Maison Baguès, Circa 1940

A gueridon of exceptional refinement, constructed in richly patinated bronze fashioned to simulate bamboo — each leg and crossbar carefully cast to replicate the natural nodes, internodes, and surface texture of this exotic material, yet executed with the precision and solidity of a great bronze workshop. The circular top is inset with a panel of genuine Chinese lacquer, its surface presenting the characteristic depth and luminosity of East Asian lacquerwork adorned with traditional motifs of figures in landscapes. This marriage of faux-bamboo bronze and Chinese lacquer creates an object of extraordinary decorative richness.

This gueridon bears the unmistakable mark of Maison Baguès, the celebrated Parisian bronze-working firm founded in the late nineteenth century and established as the premier supplier of bronze decorative objects and lighting to the great interior decorators of the twentieth century. Maison Baguès was famed above all for its mastery of the faux-bamboo technique — casting bronze to replicate the delicate structure of bamboo with astonishing verisimilitude — and for its elegant synthesis of Western classical forms with Asian decorative elements. Their work graced the residences of the most distinguished clients of Maison Jansen, Maison Charles, and the greatest decorators of the age.

This gueridon embodies the art of the Orient-inspired French interior as practised by the Parisian elite of the mid-twentieth century. Whether positioned in a drawing room as a side table, displayed in an entrance hall, or used as a lamp table in a library, it commands attention through the sophistication of its materials and the elegance of its form. A piece of the rarest quality, bearing the hallmark of one of the most prestigious names in the history of French decorative metalwork.