(1) In mid-eighteenth-century Sicily, the French style still predominated, and with it, a taste for veneer, refined marquetry with expensive woods, and gilt-bronze mounts.(2) Another piece of furniture that made its appearance in France during the eighteenth century was the bidet, which also became an elaborate confection with fine ornate marquetry decoration, worthy of the finest craftsmen.(3) For centuries this method was used only for marquetry and furniture.(4) Although he did not invent the technique of lavishly veneering furniture with marquetry of exotic tortoiseshell, pewter and brass and variously coloured woods which is named after him, he was, without doubt, its greatest exponent.(5) The vogue for marquetry on furniture originated in post-Renaissance Italy and reached its apogee in mid-eighteenth-century France.(6) In style, portable furniture imitated stationary pieces but often lacked omamentation such as marquetry , inlays, or elaborate mounts.(7) The first lot is an amaranth and marquetry box whose top is inlaid with a map of the British Isles.(8) The marquetry tops contain an evocative song sheet of the period and the doors open to reveal drawers.(9) In addition to elaborate marquetry panels and inset porcelain plaques, much of this furniture was accented with bronze mounts.(10) Many incorporate marquetry or intricate laminations of exotic woods with decorative details fashioned from salvaged objects like buttons, toys, sheet metal, linoleum or other found materials.(11) There are some trademark pieces - elegant-legged tables and high-quality marquetry - mixed in with contemporary designer furniture, antique shop finds and some very in-your-face art.(12) Most antique furniture can suffer as a result of extremes in temperature, especially painted and lacquered examples and those inlaid with marquetry , brass or ivory decoration.(13) The rooms are filled with magnificent writing tables with trompe l' oeil marquetry , cabinets, carpets, tapestries, porcelain and gold and silver wear.(14) There is an office panelled with marquetry more reminiscent of tsarist palaces than passenger planes.(15) This luxurious piece of furniture is rectilinear, with sharply defined planes delineated by vertical and horizontal bands of ornamental marquetry .(16) Sicilian marquetry furniture is immediately recognizable by the rosettes with eight petals, similar to the quatrefoil of Genoa and the star of Naples.
