The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Dish (part of a set)

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
(00:00:52)

The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet
(00:02:20) 11562 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Demonstration
(00:02:17) 18147 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation
(00:01:00) 3152 views

Dish (part of a set)

Date:: ca. 1585
Culture:: British, London and Chinese
Medium:: Hard-paste porcelain, silver gilt
Dimensions:: H: 4 in. (10.2 cm.) Diam: 14 3/8 in. (36.5 cm.)
Classification:: Metalwork
Credit Line:: Rogers Fund, 1944
Accession Number:: 44.14.1

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 203

Description

Chinese porcelains were a great rarity in sixteenth-century England, and they were often fitted with gilt-silver mounts that proclaimed their high status as luxury objects. Examples such as this were regarded as suitable for royal gifts or for the furnishing of aristocratic houses.
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Marking: [1] (on scalloped band above foot stamped) three trefoils voided within a shaped shield (silversmith's mark); [2] (inside mount of base, scratched) crescent; The oblique line seen crossing the shield suggests that there was a flaw in the die.
Provenance

William Cecil, Lord Burghley , Burghley, Northamptonshire, England ; Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter ; William Alleyne Cecil, 3rd Marquis of Exeter ; William Agnew (until 1888; sale, Christie's, London, June 7–8, 1888, lots 256- 59; sold to Agnew); J. Pierpont Morgan ; J. P. Morgan Jr.
See also
What
Metal (59,483)

Clay (23,631)

Metalwork (14,681)

Silver (14,046)

Faience (11,688)

Porcelain (11,378)

Gilt (9,077)

Dishes (6,708)

Hard paste porcelain (2,916)
Where
Europe (150,372)

United Kingdom (25,690)

England (6,147)

London (2,016)
When
A.D. 1400-1600 (20,634)
In the Museum
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts (43,228)
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Great Britain and Ireland, 1400–1600 A.D.
MetPublications
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