Getty Museum

Paneling

Date

about 1719

Medium

Oak, carved, painted and gilded

Culture

French

Department

Decorative Arts

Institution

Getty Museum

Created around 1719, these wall panels once covered the walls of the library in a private Parisian *hôtel particulier* (townhouse) at number 7 place Vendôme, although in what form or arrangement remains unknown. The series of fourteen paneled doors originally opened to reveal bookshelves behind. The *hôtel* was built between 1704 and 1707 for a wealthy financier, Claude Le Bas de Montargis, by his father-in-law Jules-Hardouin Mansart, architect to Louis XIV. When acquired by the Getty Museum, all but two of the panels had been stripped of their original paint and gilding. Remarkably, the two curved corner panels retained much of their original finish, described as "sea-green" in an inventory, with lilac washes and gilding. These panels served as models for the repainting and gilding of the rest. One curved panel has been left in its unrestored condition. The oval frame above the mantelpiece originally contained a bas-relief representing Louis XIV. Conservators cast a replacement from a marble portrait medallion in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The floor is also not original but is a traditional design.

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