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Empire style

Style of furniture and interior decoration that flourished in France during the First Empire (1804–14). It corresponds to the Regency style in England. Responding to the desire of Napoleon for a style inspired by imperial Rome, the architects Charles Percier (1764–1838) and Pierre Fontaine (1762–1853) decorated his state rooms with Classical styles of furniture and ornamental motifs, supplemented by sphinxes and palm leaves to commemorate his Egyptian campaigns. The style influenced the arts (Jacques-Louis David in painting, Antonio Canova in sculpture, the Arc de Triomphe in architecture) and fashion and spread quickly throughout Europe.

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