Late 20th Century Maitland Smith French Regency Louis XVI Flame Mahogany Serpentine Desk

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A gorgeous French Regency Louis XVI or French Empire style executive partner's desk

By Maitland Smith

Philippines, Late 20th Century

… Read more A gorgeous French Regency Louis XVI or French Empire style executive partner's desk

By Maitland Smith

Philippines, Late 20th Century

Gorgeous flame mahogany, with inlaid embossed leather inlaid top and original brass hardware.

Measures: 57.75"W x 29.5"D x 30.25"H.

Very good original vintage condition.

The desk is finished on all sides and can be used floating in a room. Back side has faux drawers. Comes apart in three sections for ease of transport and placement in the home or office.

The eclectic furnishings of Maitland-Smith celebrate artisan skills in an age of machines. Hand-carved woodwork, inlaid marquetry, painted detailing, gilding and lost wax casting lend the company’s decorative accents an artistic flair. Focused on pieces that add a dynamic flourish to an interior by incorporating tactile materials like leather, seashell inlays and crushed eggshell, the manufacturer draws inspiration across centuries, from the curvy forms of the Louis XV period to the geometric angles of mid-century modernism.

Paul Maitland-Smith established the company in Hong Kong in 1979, after getting his start in London in the 1950s as an antique dealer who also sold reproduction furniture, something that would become a Maitland-Smith specialty. The manufacturer’s early reproductions of 17th- and 18th-century furniture included Chippendale dining chairs, and soon afterward, Maitland-Smith expanded into a range of decorative designs that often exuded a whimsical spirit, whether a coffee table shaped like a stack of books or a pair of decorative obelisks. Maitland-Smith’s signature sculptural table lamps in particular show off this playful sensibility, with one balancing a pen-shell shade on a monkey’s tail and another taking on the form of a miniature hot-air balloon.

Since its founding, Maitland-Smith’s sourcing has been based in Asia, and although Paul Maitland-Smith later sold the company that still bears his name and is now headquartered in North Carolina, the brand’s furnishings are still largely made in Cebu, Philippines.

Today, Maitland-Smith continues to innovate on its finely crafted offerings by collaborating with contemporary designers and studios such as Tony Duquette Studios (founded by set and costume designer Tony Duquette in 1941), Celerie Kemble and painter and textile designer Susan Hable Smith. See less