Commode ca. 1740-45 Bernard II van Risenburgh This Commode or chest of drawers is stamped four times with the initials BVRB, indicating that it was the work of the cabinetmaker Bernard van Risenburgh ll who is particularly known for his exquisite pieces of furniture veneered with Asian lacquer. In most cases, the cabinetmaker used Japanese lacquer: here, however, the lacquer is Chinese, most likely derived from a large multi-leaf folding screen shipped to Europe via the Coromandel coast of southeast India. Carefully selecting pieces with an interesting pictorial decoration to use as veneer for both the drawers and the sides, the cabinetmaker would have been limited by the size of the lacquer. The fact that the screens panels are tall and narrow would explain why separate and unrelated figural groups are used on the commodes front. The square side panels show fantastic animals in a landscape setting and were likely not large enough to cover the entire area, necessitating a painted fra