The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Art Object

The Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

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.

Video/Audio (4)

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) 16461 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation
(00:01:00) 3008 views

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Movement by John Midnall (recorded ca. 1620–41)

Date:: probably ca. 1620–30
Culture:: British, London
Medium:: Case: silver; Movement: gilded brass and steel, partly blued
Dimensions:: H. 1-1/2 x W. 7/8 in. (3.8 x 2.2 cm)
Classification:: Horology
Credit Line:: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number:: 17.190.1472

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 517

Description

John Midnall was one of the first assistants in the London Clockmakers’ Company, chartered in 1631. The case was probably given its floral decoration about the middle of the seventeenth century.
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Signature: Jo Midnall/in Fleet street/Fecit (on the back plate of the movement)
Provenance

Frederick George Hilton Price , London ; J. Pierpont Morgan
See also
Who
John Midnall (1)
What
Metal (59,364)

Copper alloy (16,630)

Silver (14,056)

Gilt (9,043)

Iron and iron alloy (6,952)

Brass (3,505)

Iron alloy (3,389)

Steel (3,119)

Cases (1,751)

Timepieces (1,121)

Watches (767)

Movements (73)
Where
Europe (148,586)

United Kingdom (25,557)

England (9,102)

London (2,006)
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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The Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

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Movement by John Midnall (recorded ca. 1620–41)

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The Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

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Movement by John Midnall (recorded ca. 1620–41)

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