The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Art Object

The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet

Discover the hidden features and intricate interior of this cabinet.

One of the finest achievements of European furniture making, this cabinet is the most important product from Abraham (1711–1793) and David Roentgen's (1743–1807) workshop. A writing cabinet crowned with a chiming clock, it features finely designed marquetry panels and elaborate mechanisms that allow for doors and drawers to be opened automatically at the touch of a button. Owned by King Frederick William II, the Berlin cabinet is uniquely remarkable for its ornate decoration, mechanical complexity, and sheer size.

This cabinet, from Kunstgewerbemuseum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, is featured in the exhibition Extravagant Inventions: The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens (on view October 30, 2012–January 27, 2013).

Footage courtesy of VideoART GmbH and Kunstgewerbemuseum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin.

David Roentgen: Long-Case Clock
(00:00:52)

The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet
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Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation
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Pair-case watch

Watchmaker: Thomas Tompion (1639–1713)

Maker:: Case maker: Nathanial Delander (recorded 1668 or 1669, died ca. 1691 or before)
Date:: before 1682
Culture:: British, London
Medium:: Outer case: leather, studded with gold pins; Inner case and champlevé dial: gold; movement, with verge escapment signed
Dimensions:: Diam. 2-1/2 in. (6.4 cm)
Classification:: Horology
Credit Line:: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number:: 17.190.1489a, b

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 517

Description

This extraordinary watch records seconds on the subsidiary dial above the number VI on the chapter ring for hours and minutes. It also has a remarkably early stop mechanism that can be activated at will in order to measure short intervals of time. The watch is not numbered on the back plate, but it is numbered 175 on the pillar plate and on the inner case.
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Marking: Inner case: [1] ND above 175 (punched) (interior) (probably Nathanial Delander); Movement: [1] Tho. Tompion London (engraved) (on the backplate); [2] SC (back of the dial plate); [3] 175 (punched) (on the pillar plate); [4] 72 (scratched) (on the back of the dial); [5] 1 1/4 (scratched) (on the back of the clock); Outer case: AWR (monogram)
Provenance

Frederick George Hilton Price ; J. Pierpont Morgan (until 1917; to MMA)
See also
Who
Thomas Tompion (9)

Nathanial Delander (3)
What
Metal (59,483)

Gold (12,360)

Leather (5,943)

Cases (1,751)

Pins (1,472)

Timepieces (1,121)

Watches (767)

Champlevé (329)

Dials (94)

Movements (75)
Where
Europe (150,372)

United Kingdom (25,690)

England (6,147)

London (2,016)
When
A.D. 1600-1800 (67,128)
In the Museum
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts (43,228)
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Seventeenth–Century European Watches

Great Britain and Ireland, 1600–1800 A.D.

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The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet

Pair-case watch

Watchmaker: Thomas Tompion (1639–1713)

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The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet

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Pair-case watch

Watchmaker: Thomas Tompion (1639–1713)

Met Media

Met Kids

Met Store