Mid-19th Century French Carved Walnut Door

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A single door like this one is proof that even the parts of a piece nobody was meant to touch … Read more A single door like this one is proof that even the parts of a piece nobody was meant to touch daily got the full attention of a carver's hand. Its arched crest carries a carved shell cartouche flanked by scrolling acanthus leaves, the same rocaille vocabulary that defined French Louis XV furniture, worked here in solid walnut rather than reserved for a grander case piece. Below the crest, a serpentine panel with more carved scrollwork fills the body of the door, with an old iron escutcheon still set into the wood where a key once turned. We're selling this one on its own, separated at some point from the armoire it originally closed, which makes it a genuine architectural fragment rather than a full functioning cabinet. The carving runs deep enough to cast real shadow rather than sitting flat on the surface, and the walnut has taken on a rich, uneven patina that only comes from a century or more of handling. At 22 inches wide and just over 5 and a half feet tall, it works mounted flat on a wall as sculpture, or mounted as a wonderful pantry door or closet door. See less