The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Saucer (part of a service)

Art Object

Program Information

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Demonstration

Program information

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).

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Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Demonstration

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Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation

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Saucer (part of a service)

Sèvres Manufactory (French, 1740–present)

Decorator:: Decorator (shipping scenes): Jean-Louis Morin (active 1754–87)
Maker:: Gilder: Étienne-Henry Le Guay (active 1748–49, 1751–97)
Date:: 1775
Culture:: French (Sèvres)
Medium:: Soft-paste porcelain
Dimensions:: Diam. 5 1/2 in. (14.0 cm.)
Classification:: Ceramics
Credit Line:: Gift of Samuel H. Kress Foundation, 1958
Accession Number:: 58.75.108

This artwork is not on display

120017557