The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Pope Alexander VII (1599

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
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The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet
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Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Demonstration
(00:02:17) 16720 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation
(00:01:00) 3016 views

Pope Alexander VII (1599–1667)

Melchiorre Cafà (Maltese, 1638–1667)

Founder:: Cast by Giovanni Piscina
Date:: 1667
Culture:: Italian, Rome
Medium:: Bronze
Dimensions:: Overall (confirmed): H. 39 1/4 x W. 34 1/4 x D. 16 1/2 in., 145lb. (99.7 x 87 x 41.9 cm, 65.7716kg)
Classification:: Sculpture
Credit Line:: Edith Perry Chapman Fund, 1957
Accession Number:: 57.20

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 550

Description

This bust was cast at the Vatican foundry, probably by Giovanni Artusa da Piscina, after a model by Cafà.
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Signature: signed and dated on back of cape: MELCHIOR. CAFA/MELITENSIS / FAC. AN DOM. / MDCLXVII
Provenance

Pope Alexander VII (until d. 1667) ; Baron Gustave de Rothschild , Paris ; by descent to Baroness Rothschild-Lambert , Paris ; [ Stiebel Ltd. , New York (until 1957; sold to MMA) ]
See also
Who
Giovanni Piscina (1)

Melchiorre Cafà (1)
What
Metal (59,364)

Sculpture (24,350)

Copper alloy (16,630)

Bronze (11,628)

Figures (5,008)

Busts (553)
Where
Europe (148,586)

Italy (20,983)

Rome (588)
When
A.D. 1600-1800 (66,179)
In the Museum
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts (43,257)
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Baroque Rome

Rome and Southern Italy, 1600–1800 A.D.
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Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation

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Pope Alexander VII (1599–1667)

Melchiorre Cafà (Maltese, 1638–1667)

Met Media

Met Kids

Met Store