french Royal Inventory marks
Inventory marks on royal french furniture
I have heard a number of stories about a table owned by Marie Antoinette or a chair that belonged to Napoleon, where the only guarantee of provenance is family word of mouth. Frankly, the odds of a piece of French furniture having a royal provenance but being unmarked is extremely small. Before and after the revolution, the French government had an organization called the Garde Meuble that purchased new furniture, controlled the distribution of furniture and kept extensive inventories of its stock. Various stamps and marks were used that indicate the period and the placement of each item. The following examples are from the author's collection, so this is hardly a comprehensive list. Furthermore, as I concentrate on Empire and Restoration furniture, the marks shown are from those periods.
.jpg "French Garde Meuble Stamp")
.jpg "Tuileries Inventory 1829")
.jpg "Tuileries Palace Stamp")
.jpg "Tuileries Stamp")
.jpg "Partial Louis Philippe Palace Neuilly Stamp")
.jpg "Tuileries Inventory Stamp")
.jpg "Garde Meuble and Tuileries Stamp")
.jpg "Palace Royal Label - Empire")
