A Gustavian travel secretaire by Georg Haupt

Important Winter Sale presents

Georg Haupt “A newly discovered travel secretaire”

Bukowskis has been entrusted to sell a hitherto unknown piece of furniture by Georg Haupt at this autumn’s auction. Being able to present a newly discovered, signed piece of furniture by Sweden’s foremost ébéniste is extremely rare. As it is also a previously unknown model, so it can be considered unique. The fact that the furniture was located in England may explain why it has not been noticed before, despite recent research.

The piece of furniture in question is a travel secretaire with folding legs, a design known from two earlier secretaries by Haupt. These two have the shape of a cylinder secretaire, while the auction secretaire is based on the shape of a writing box, a design not previously known at Haupt. John Böttiger quotes in his book about Haupt an account from 1775 where Haupt repaired a “travel table” also called “Rese skrifschatoll. What this piece of furniture looked like has not been known, but the auction’s travel secretaire indicates what the model may have looked like.

The secretaire is deceptively simple on the outside and richly decorated on the inside, like a cabinet. This contrasts with what one generally finds on Haupt´s secretaries, where the rich inlay on the outside contrasts with the usually simple drawer interiors, sometimes completely undecorated. The use of partly in solid mahogany with line incrustations, shows influences from Haupt’s years in England. In the profiling of the base, the fitting of the folding legs and the rich inlaid decoration of the interior, Haupt shows his unparalleled craftsmanship throughout. One recognizes his elegant laurel swag with a medallion and the use of shading to create a three-dimensional effect. In addition, the furniture is equipped with refinements such as hidden drawers and a reading desk, the folding mechanism of which is concealed behind “false screws”.