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The Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

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Art Object
Program Information

The Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

Program information

See how this desk converts into a dressing table.

When closed, this table may not seem like one of the most complex pieces of European furniture ever made. However, once opened, its concealed drawers and hidden features are exposed, and the entire piece transforms into a dressing table, orpoudreuse. Scholars believe it was commissioned as a wedding gift from Abraham (1711–1793) and David Roentgen (1743–1807) by Friedrich August III, Elector of Saxony, to his bride in 1769.

This table, from Museum für Angewandte Kunst, Frankfurt, is featured in the exhibition Extravagant Inventions: The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens (on view October 30, 2012–January 27, 2013).

Images courtesy of Museum für Angewandte Kunst, Frankfurt.

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Armchair

Attributed to Georges Jacob  (1739–1814, master 1765)

Date:
ca. 1785
Culture:
French (Paris)
Medium:
Carved and gilded beechwood, silk upholstery
Dimensions:
38-3/4 x 26-3/8 x 23-5/8 in. (98.4 x 67.0 x 60.0 cm)
Classification:
Woodwork
Credit Line:
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1906
Accession Number:
07.225.106

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 528

120003839

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