A fine English William and Mary walnut and marquetry cabinet on stand - 18th century, attributed to GERRIT JENSEN ...

A fine English William and Mary walnut and marquetry cabinet on stand - 18th century, attributed to GERRIT JENSEN (1667-1715) - decorated overall with foliate scrolls, arabesques and strapwork, the rectangular moulded top, over a pair of doors each centered by a roundel with figures, enclosing a similarly inlaid interior with twelve drawers around a central cupboard door enclosing further drawers and secret compartments, the cabinet sides decorated with arabesques, above a similarly-decorated stand fitted with three drawers, on twisted legs joined by concave stretchers. Gerrit Jensen was reputedly the most important figure in English cabinet-making from ca. 1667 to 1715. Through his tenure in the office of Cabinet Maker in Ordinary to successive monarchs from James II to Queen Anne, his work would have contributed to prevailing taste and technique given the numerous noblemen he also supplied. Despite the enormous scale of his output, the amount of attributed surviving furniture is small, and many attributions made in his name are of doubtful value. Moreover, documentary research is sometimes made problematic by the fact that his name was often Anglicised to ‘Johnson’, and several variations of his forename are found - Gerrit, Garret, Gerrard, Gerhard, Gared, &c. Jensen himself, always signed as ‘Gerrit Jensen’. Jensen was probably born in Holland about 1634/35 although this remains unproven. Details of his lineage, early life and training are unknown, although it is possible that at some time he trained and worked in Paris, since in later life he had business connections there. Dimensions: height 177 cm x 118 cm x 50.5 cm. Item condition grading: **** good, defects, minor lacks and replacements.