The compass is nearly five octaves, FF to e’’’. Two manuals and three choirs of strings (2 x 8’, 1 x 4’). The outside of the case is painted with gold leaves, flowers, and arabesques over a brownish green background. The inside of the lid features two painted pastoral landscapes. The instrument is supported by a painted cabriole stand in Louis XV style. The soundboard is painted with flowers and bears a spurious Ioannes Ruckers cast metal rose. The harpsichord was returned to playing condition in the 20th century, and the keyboards and jacks are modern replacements.

This instrument is a fine example of the French harpsichord at the peak of its musical development during the early decades of the 18th-century, the era of ‘les clavecinistes’ – the great harpsichordist-composers François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau among others. Heavily influenced by the work of Flemish makers of the 17th century, the later French makers often rebuilt older Flemish harpsichords to accommodate the musical requirements of the day. They extended the range of the keyboard to a full five octaves and converted the mechanism to the classic French disposition of two keyboards controlling three choirs of strings. Rebuilt Flemish harpsichords brought significantly higher prices than new French instruments. It was once believed that this particular harpsichord was originally made by the famous Flemish maker Ioannes Ruckers. Recent examination and comparison, however, have led to an attribution to Blanchet, the harpsichord maker to the court of Louis XV. Blanchet contrived to make the instrument appear to be a “clavecin à grand ravalement” – an old, Flemish harpsichord by Ruckers rebuilt to 18th-century French standards.