Originally commissioned in 1774 for the Hôtel du Garde-Meuble, now known as the Hôtel de la Marine, the commode is being donated by The Al Thani Collection Foundation. It will be on public view at the Hôtel de la Marine from its opening in spring 2021 as part of the refurnishing of the apartments of the intendant of the Garde-Meuble.

The commode was ordered in 1774, the year that Riesener was appointed cabinet-maker to the king, and was delivered in 1775 to the apartment of Madame Randon de Pommery, wife of the Garde-Général of the Garde-Meuble de la Couronne. It is an important prototype for a celebrated series of royal commodes that were subsequently delivered to the French royal family. In 1795, following the French Revolution, it was sold at an auction of the contents of the Hôtel du Garde-Meuble. It will return to France having appeared at auction in New York on 30 April 2019 where it was offered from a private collection.

This commode will join a drop-front secrétaire that was also made by Jean-Henri Riesener in 1771 and was recently acquired for the Hôtel de la Marine by the Centre des monuments nationaux (CMN) with the support of the French ministry of culture. The CMN is also discussing loans with a number of institutions in an effort to return other original furnishings to the halls of the Hôtel de la Marine.

The Al Thani Collection Foundation will open a museum space at the Hôtel de la Marine in 2021.

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