This monumental commode is a quintessential example of a Parisian furniture piece featuring Chinese lacquered panels. It draws on the links formed during Louis XIV’s reign between the East and the West, which expanded during the first half of the eighteenth century and resulted in one of the most daring and original developments in the decorative arts in Paris at the time. To create this commode, ébéniste and dealer Pierre Macret had to obtain the lacquered panels he needed for the design. He usually reused elements cut from Oriental screens or cabinets imported at great cost via the Compagnie des Indes. After fitting the panels to the frame, a painter/varnisher took over to varnish the frames in black, then special-ordered a gilt-bronze motif that would match the overall composition of the commode in terms of originality and refinement. We know that for this latter operation, Macret often worked with the talented bronze-caster and chiseler Philippe Pagot, whose workshop was in the same building as Macret’s. -