The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Art Object

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation

The inventive talents of David Roentgen are evident in this exceptionally refined desk. The monogram "DR" inlaid beneath the keyhole on the lower drawer indicates the cabinetmaker's satisfaction with one of his most mechanically ingenuous creations: a single key inserted at different depths unlocks the center drawer, releases the rolltop, or releases the hidden side drawers; if a button is pressed on the underside of these drawers, each swings aside to reveal three other drawers. Above the rolltop, the rectangular structure consists of a single wide drawer. The artist's creativity is evident in the chinoiserie marquetry scenes, created by using minute pieces of naturally colored exotic woods that have a painterly effect.

See Collections to learn more about this desk.

This desk is featured in the exhibition Extravagant Inventions: The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens (on view October 30, 2012–January 27, 2013).

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

The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet
(00:02:20) 10523 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Demonstration
(00:02:17) 16384 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation
(00:01:00) 3001 views

Settee

Date:: ca. 1730–35
Culture:: British
Medium:: Gilded gesso on walnut; covered in eighteenth-century silk damask not original to the settee
Dimensions:: H. 41 x W. 67-1/2 x D. 26 in. (104.1 x 171.4 x 66.0 cm)
Classification:: Woodwork
Credit Line:: Fletcher Fund, 1924
Accession Number:: 24.136.1

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 518

Description

This piece is from a large set of at least eight side chairs, four settees, four stools, and two side tables formerly attributed to James Moore (ca. 1670–1726) and said to have been made for Stowe, Buckinghamshire, a provenance now questioned.
Provenance

Great Brickhill Manor, Duncombe, Buckinghamshire, EnglandDuke(s) of Buckingham and Chandos (until 1848; the Stowe sale, London, 1848) ; Sir Pauncefort Duncombe , Great Brickhill Manor, Buckinghamshire (from 1848) ; [ Messrs. George Wigley & Sons (in 1919; sale, Great Brickhill Manor, Bucks., November 10–15, 1919, no. 864) ]
See also
What
Silk (32,922)

Gilt (9,043)

Wood (7,651)

Furniture (5,725)

Woodwork (2,582)

Seating furniture (1,792)

Walnut (909)

Gesso (362)

Damask (170)

Settees (57)
Where
Europe (148,587)

United Kingdom (25,557)

England (9,102)

Staffordshire (4,248)
When
A.D. 1600-1800 (66,179)
In the Museum
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts (43,257)
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Great Britain and Ireland, 1600–1800 A.D.
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