The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Two-handled cup with cover

Art Object

Unfolding an Eighteenth-Century Gaming Table

This finely crafted piece of furniture has a secret. Swing out a leg, adjust an arm, and voilà! Leaves unfold to reveal multiple configurations: a felt surface for card games, a game board for chess or checkers, a desk with a leather writing surface and book rest. Tug at a hidden latch, and a spring-driven backgammon board pops up.

The brainchild of German cabinetmaker David Roentgen (1743–1807), this sophisticated gaming table once graced the intimate interior of an aristocratic European home. The exquisite piece was not only convenient for entertaining guests, but it was also portable—its legs unscrew so it can easily be packed and moved.

This 3-D animation of the table demonstrates its different configurations and illuminates its concealed features, including drawers for tucking away personal items and compartments for storing game pieces.

See Collections to learn more about this table.

This table 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
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The Roentgens' Berlin Secretary Cabinet
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Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Demonstration
(00:02:17) 16640 views

Rolltop Desk by David Roentgen: Animation
(00:01:00) 3015 views

Two-handled cup with cover

Thomas Farren (British, active 1703–43)

Date:: 1732
Culture:: British, London
Medium:: Silver gilt
Dimensions:: Overall (confirmed): H. 11 13/16 x W. 7 x D. 11 1/4 in., 87 oz. 2 dwt. (30 x 17.8 x 28.6 cm, 2.7085kg)
Classification:: Metalwork
Credit Line:: Gift of Irwin Untermyer, 1968
Accession Number:: 68.141.127a, b

This artwork is not on display

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Inscription: engraved weight 865 scratched n°160, 181-86 engraved around foot: Bought with the Legacy of Robert Earl of Leitrim * engraved on cup: a coat of arms

Marking: [1] TF in a shaped shield with a mullet above and bellow (Grimwade 2749) [2] lion passant [3] date letter R [4] Leopard's head crowned location of marks: [1]-[4] on underside, repeated on bezel of cover [4]-[1]
Provenance

The Russian Imperial Family (until 1917) ; Thomas, Viscount Sydney ; Arthur E. Bradshaw , Oxford
See also
Who
Thomas Farren (12)
What
Metal (59,364)

Metalwork (14,716)

Silver (14,056)

Gilt (9,043)

Drinking vessels (6,032)

Cups (3,861)
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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Unfolding an Eighteenth-Century Gaming Table

Two-handled cup with cover

Thomas Farren (British, active 1703–43)

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Unfolding an Eighteenth-Century Gaming Table

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Two-handled cup with cover

Thomas Farren (British, active 1703–43)

Met Media

Met Kids

Met Store