Important presidential-style desk, finished in blackened wood, adorned with engraved gold and purple trim and finished with flamboyant panels in precious wood marquetry.

Height: 75cm – Length: 244cm (370cm open) – Depth: 122cm

History : 

A major New York furniture and decoration company in the second half of the 19th century, Herter Brothers was responsible for creating a distinctly American style. However, the story begins in Germany with two half-brothers, Gustave and Christian Herter, born in 1830 and 1839 in Stuttgart. The son and adopted son of a cabinetmaker, Christian Herter, it was probably through contact with their father that the two boys developed an interest in carpentry applied to the decorative arts. Gustave, the elder brother, studied drawing, architecture, and cabinetmaking in his native country before emigrating to the United States in 1848. Upon arriving in New York, he became a designer for Tiffany, Young & Ellis, the predecessor of Tiffany & Co. Around 1853, after briefly partnering with American cabinetmaker Edward W. Hutchings, then French cabinetmaker Auguste Pottier (1823-1896) – who would later become his biggest competitor with Pottier & Stymus – Gustave Herter opened his own furniture factory. In 1860, his half-brother Christian, who had just completed his studies in Stuttgart and at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, also emigrated to the United States and joined the Gustave Herter factory. In 1865, the brothers joined forces and founded Herter Brothers.  The prestigious furniture created in their workshops is reminiscent of Gothic, Renaissance, Rococo, and Louis XVI styles, sometimes with Greek or Moorish influences, and is intended for a wealthy clientele. Among the patrons of Herter Bros. pieces were wealthy Americans, mainly from the worlds of business and finance, such as Jay Gould, Philip Danforth Armour, James J. Goodwin, John Pierpont Morgan, Darius Ogden Mills, and of course William H. Vanderbilt, who entrusted the firm with the interior design of his exuberant mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York City. In 1868, Christian Herter left for Europe in search of inspiration [...].