The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Rolltop Desk

Rolltop Desk

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Rolltop Desk

David Roentgen (German, Herrnhag 1743–1807 Wiesbaden, master 1780)

Artist:: Chinoiserie scenes possibly after designs by Januarius Zick (German, Munich before 1730–1797 Ehrenbreitstein)
Date:: ca. 1776–79
Culture:: German (Neuwied)
Medium:: Oak, cherry, cedar, pine and mahogany; veneered with mahogany, maple, burled walnut, kingwood, tulipwood, boxwood, ebony and various other woods, partly stained, mother-of-pearl; brass, partly gold-lacquered; gilt-bronze mounts; steel and brass operating mechanisms, leather
Dimensions:: H. 53 1/2 in. (135.9 cm), W. 43 1/2 in. (110.5 cm), D. 26 1/2 in. (67.3 cm)
Classification:: Woodwork
Credit Line:: Rogers Fund, 1941
Accession Number:: 41.82

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 199

Description

This rolltop desk demonstrates the inventive talent of its maker. The chinoiserie marquetry scenes have a painterly effect that Roentgen alone attained, using minute pieces of naturally colored exotic woods. His mechanical ingenuity is exemplified by the workings of the lower section of the desk: when the key of the lower drawer is turned to the right, the side drawers spring open; if a button is pressed on the underside of these drawers, each swings aside to reveal three other drawers. Although Roentgen maintained his workshop at Neuwied, Germany, where this desk was made between 1776 and 1778, his French clientele became so important that he opened an outlet in Paris and joined the Parisian guild in 1780.
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Signature: [inlaid beneath keyhole escutcheon on central drawer]: DR [interlaced] (maker's monogram)
Provenance

Marquis, Paris (until 1890; Marquis sale, Hôtel Drouot, February 10, 1890, no. 352) ; Possibly M. Mialhet (after 1890-after 1901) ; Madame de Polès (until 1927, sale, Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, June 22–24, 1927, no. 277, pl. CXVI; sold to Arnold Seligmann); [ Arnold Seligmann, Rey and Company, New York , Paris, 1927 ] ; Mrs. Henry Walters , New York (until 1941; sale, Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, April 26, 1941, Vol. I, no. 731; sold to Jacques Helft, Paris (?) ); [ possibly Jacques Helft , Paris, 1941 ] ; [ Seligmann, Rey & Co. , New York, 1941; sold to MMA ]
See also
Who
David Roentgen (8)

Januarius Zick (5)
What
Metal (59,548)

Copper alloy (16,533)

Gold (12,589)

Bronze (11,706)

Gilt (9,076)

Wood (6,942)

Iron and iron alloy (6,911)

Furniture (5,826)

Leather (5,802)

Brass (3,496)

Iron alloy (3,359)

Steel (3,095)

Plate (2,677)

Woodwork (2,554)

Ormolu (1,692)

Softwood (1,164)

Oak (1,089)

Mahogany (961)

Walnut (910)

Pearl (905)

Pine (889)

Case furniture (876)

Maple (491)

Ebony (362)

Boxwood (243)

Desks (194)

Cedar (151)

Cherry (150)

Tulipwood (142)

Violet wood (43)

Burled walnut (3)

Rolltop desks (2)
Where
Europe (146,011)

Germany (15,391)

Koblenz (27)

Neuwied (4)
When
A.D. 1600-1800 (64,799)
In the Museum
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts (43,200)
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Neoclassicism

Saint Petersburg

Central Europe (including Germany), 1600–1800 A.D.

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