Rococo Revival John Henry Belter Meridienne

LCT Home are thrilled to offer for sale this spectacular Rococo Revival Meridienne/Recamier 'fainting couch' attributed to the American master cabinet maker John Henry Belter, who is widely considered to be the godfather of American Rococo Revival furniture of the highest quality, using Walnut with overlaid veneer.

Many of Belter's pieces reside in museums, such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the V&A, so for a piece of this quality and exceptional stature to become available to the market is extremely rare.

The deep carved cabriole legs, resplendent in C and S curves and scrolls, are incredibly detailed and complimented by the extravagant floral and clam shell decoration are simply beautiful.

The deep buttoned high back undulating seat has been fully professionally reupholstered in a sumptuous Oatmeal Linen, as well as each of the over 100 deep set buttons. Likewise the frame has been hand polished by our expert French Polisher, resulting in what we consider to be the most exceptional piece of furniture that we have had the privilege to offer from our collections.

This piece dates to circa 1850 and was removed from a Castle Estate in France in 2020.

Height 118cm x Length 198cm x Depth 76cm.
Seat Height from floor 43cm. Seat Depth 65cm. Height off floor at centre (lowest point of frame) 17cm

John Henry Belter (1804–1863) was an American cabinetmaker active in New York CityBelter was born in Hilter near Osnabrück, Germany and was trained as a cabinetmaker's apprentice in Württemberg, specializing in German rococo carving, which later became popular during the Victorian Era and is known today as the Rococo Revival style. He moved to NYC in 1833, becoming a citizen in 1839. His shop "J.H. Belter and Co." was located during the years 1846-1852 at nr. 372 Broadway. He is known for developing a technique for processing laminated rosewood in many layers to achieve thin panels that, once shaped in molds through steam heating, were finely carved. This style which became very popular in NYC, was widely copied by his competitors in New York, Philadelphia, and Boston.Belter died in New York City and his business was carried on by his brothers-in-law, the Springmyers. *

He was in his time and remains today renowned for his laminated and carved Rococo Revival parlor and bedroom suites.furniture in this revival style was inspired by eighteenth-century French sources and is characterized by curved, cabriole legs, strong C- and S-curves and scrolls, and the extravagant use of carved, naturalistic ornament, particularly flowers.

Today Belter is considered one of the defining artisans of the Rococo Revival, and his pieces are highly sought after and collectable.

ref: * Vincent, Clare. “John Henry Belter Patent Parlour Furniture” Furniture History, vol. 3, 1967

More photographs available on request

All of our collections are available to purchase directly at LCT Home so please visit the LCT Home website where you will be able to view all of our pieces and purchase securely, shipping will be automatically added at checkout for UK clients, clients outside of the UK, please contact us for a bespoke shipping quote to your address.

All our items are genuine antique/vintage pieces and therefore can have some signs of age related use or wear, this adds to the character and uniqueness of each of them.

We try to give accurate measurements wherever possible, however where items are unusual shapes please trust our approx dimensions to be as close as possible.