Antique Époque French Empire Bibliothèque

The French would refer to this antique bookcase as époque, meaning from the time of the Empire period and not just in the style of. Empire French furniture was an early-nineteenth (c.1800 to the late 1820’s) and represented the 2nd phase of Neoclassicism. French architects, Charles Percier and Pierre Fontaine combined to create the French Empire style. They studied in Italy and during the 1790’s were leading designers of French furniture in Paris. Our Empire bookcase is of grand proportions and was faithfully restored, while not trying to over do it. Although at first appearance, you might mistake it for an ebonized bookcase, but look again and you’ll notice the bookcase is really a very dark brown.