The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Jean-Louis de Nogaret de la Valette, Duke of Épernon, colonel general of infantry (1554-1642)

Art Object

The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet

Discover the hidden features and intricate interior of this cabinet.

One of the finest achievements of European furniture making, this cabinet is the most important product from Abraham (1711–1793) and David Roentgen's (1743–1807) workshop. A writing cabinet crowned with a chiming clock, it features finely designed marquetry panels and elaborate mechanisms that allow for doors and drawers to be opened automatically at the touch of a button. Owned by King Frederick William II, the Berlin cabinet is uniquely remarkable for its ornate decoration, mechanical complexity, and sheer size.

This cabinet, from Kunstgewerbemuseum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, is featured in the exhibition Extravagant Inventions: The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens (on view October 30, 2012–January 27, 2013).

Footage courtesy of VideoART GmbH and Kunstgewerbemuseum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin.

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) 16910 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation
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Jean-Louis de Nogaret de la Valette, Duke of Épernon, colonel general of infantry (1554-1642)

Medalist: Guillaume Dupré (French, 1574–1642)

Date:: 1607
Culture:: French
Medium:: Bronze, brown patina
Dimensions:: Diam. 2 1/8 in. (54 mm.)
Classification:: Medals and Plaquettes
Credit Line:: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1936
Accession Number:: 36.110.26

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 532

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Signature: (behind head on obverse) G DVPRE F 1607

Inscription: Obverse: (in margin) I[oannes].L[udovicus].A.LAVALETA.D[ux].ESPERN[oni].P[rovinciae].ET.TOT[ius].GAL[liae].PEDIT[um].PRAEF[ectus] (Jean-Louis de La Valette, Duke of Épernon, governor of Provence and colonel general of French infantry); reverse: (in margin above) INTACTVS.VTRINQVE (By either unharmed)
Provenance

Henry Oppenheimer (until 1936; sale, Christie, Manson and Woods, London, July 29, 1936, p. 83, no. 316; sold to MMA)
See also
Who
Guillaume Dupré (26)
What
Metal (59,364)

Sculpture (24,350)

Copper alloy (16,630)

Bronze (11,628)

Medals (3,076)

Plaquettes (2,085)

Patina (368)
Where
Europe (148,586)

France (52,276)
When
A.D. 1600-1800 (66,179)
In the Museum
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts (43,257)
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Pastoral Charms in the French Renaissance

Ceramics in the French Renaissance

France, 1600–1800 A.D.

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The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet

Jean-Louis de Nogaret de la Valette, Duke of Épernon, colonel general of infantry (1554-1642)

Medalist: Guillaume Dupré (French, 1574–1642)

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The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet

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Jean-Louis de Nogaret de la Valette, Duke of Épernon, colonel general of infantry (1554-1642)

Medalist: Guillaume Dupré (French, 1574–1642)

Met Media

Met Kids

Met Store