Semainier

During the reigns of Louis XV and Louis XVI, a very comfortable piece of furniture appeared in the interiors of French residences of the 18th century. It was a narrow, rather tall chest of drawers with a vertical arrangement of several drawers. It is called chiffonier from the French "chiffon" meaning linen, a small piece of cloth, a cloth. It was designed to store underwear, accessories of women's clothing, ornaments, jewellery, papers. A particular variation of the chiffonier became the semainier, which had seven drawers – respectively for each day of the week. Indeed, the name derives from the French "semaine" meaning week. The neo-Rococo French semainier on display dates back to the second half of the 19th century. During the time of the Second French Empire, under the reign of Napoleon III, luxury prevailed in interior architecture and furniture-making. The imitation of works of past eras, from Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo to Classicism, resulted in an era of products and interiors introducing historical elements, often even overwhelmed by detail and ornamentation. This is evident in the example of the presented semainier, which, while remaining a refined piece of furniture, lacks the finesse and lightness of Louis XV-era furniture. 

Teresa Bagińska-Żurawska https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9243-3967