The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Salver (part of a coffee service)

Art Object

Abraham Roentgen's Writing Desk

Discover the secret compartments of this writing table and see how it can be transformed into a private altar.

Perhaps the most exquisite and technically refined piece from German cabinetmaker Abraham Roentgen (1711–1793), this desk was made for his premier patron, the Catholic official Johann Philipp von Walderdorff. Its interior holds a multitude of drawers, panels, and compartments, in addition to sophisticated mechanical fittings that safeguard the elector’s privacy.

This writing table from the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, is featured in the exhibition Extravagant Inventions: The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens (on view October 30, 2012–January 27, 2013). Learn more about the table: http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/collectie/BK-16676/bureau-op-s-vormige-poten-versierd-met-marqueterie.

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Salver (part of a coffee service)

Edward Pearce (ca. 1630–1695)

Date:: 1724
Culture:: British, London
Medium:: Silver gilt
Dimensions:: Overall (confirmed): 1 1/4 x 10 11/16 x 10 11/16 in., 26.879oz. (3.2 x 27.1 x 27.1 cm, 762g)
Classification:: Metalwork
Credit Line:: Gift of Irwin Untermyer, 1968
Accession Number:: 68.141.270

This artwork is not on display

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Inscription: Engraved: G and R flanking the royal arms and cipher. Inscribed: HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE

Marking: [1] EP, maker's mark for Edward Pierce; [2] Lion passant; [3] lion's head frontal, crowned; [4] London date letter, I for 1724
Provenance

[ S. J. Phillips ; to Irwin Untermyer, September 25, 1968 ] ; Irwin Untermyer (in 1968; to MMA)
See also
Who
Edward Pearce (2)
What
Metal (59,364)

Metalwork (14,716)

Silver (14,056)

Gilt (9,043)

Salvers (115)
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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Abraham Roentgen's Writing Desk

Salver (part of a coffee service)

Edward Pearce (ca. 1630–1695)

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Abraham Roentgen's Writing Desk

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Salver (part of a coffee service)

Edward Pearce (ca. 1630–1695)

Met Media

Met Kids

Met Store