Maison Gagneau
Maison Gagneau was a Parisian bronzier and lighting manufacturer founded in 1800. The firm became highly regarded during the 19th century for its decorative bronzes and lighting, and is known to have worked with celebrated ceramicist Théodore Deck.
The business was originally based at 25 rue d’Enghien before moving to 115 rue Lafayette. Maison Gagneau exhibited at major French industrial and international exhibitions throughout the 19th century and was sufficiently well regarded that the firm was represented on the jury for the Bronzes category at the 1889 Exposition Universelle in Paris.
Victorian Walnut Serpentine Credenza with Marquetry & Ormolu Mounts by Maison Gagneau
Our Research & Documentation
During the cleaning of the credenza, we removed several of the ormolu mounts in order to clean their reverses, which were extremely dirty. It was only during this process that we discovered the “GA” stamps on the reverse of several pieces of ormolu moulding.
Following further research, we found multiple documented examples of the same “GA” stamp on the reverse of decorative bronzes and lighting by Maison Gagneau, confirming the marks found on our credenza as those of the firm.
The discovery is particularly interesting because examples of the stamp appear to be more commonly documented on decorative bronzes and lighting, making its presence on the ormolu mounts of a piece of furniture an unusual and valuable piece of evidence. Maison Gagneau exhibited at the major exhibitions of the period and was regarded as one of the leading bronze manufacturers of its day. It would therefore be entirely consistent for such a firm to have supplied bronze work to cabinetmakers; the mounts on this credenza provide an interesting surviving example of this aspect of its production.
Illustrated Maker’s Marks and Stamps
