The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Writing table (Bureau plat)

Art Object

Demonstration of the Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

See how this desk converts into a dressing table.

When closed, this table may not seem like one of the most complex pieces of European furniture ever made. However, once opened, its concealed drawers and hidden features are exposed, and the entire piece transforms into a dressing table, orpoudreuse. Scholars believe it was commissioned as a wedding gift from Abraham (1711–1793) and David Roentgen (1743–1807) by Friedrich August III, Elector of Saxony, to his bride in 1769.

This table, from Museum für Angewandte Kunst, Frankfurt, is featured in the exhibition Extravagant Inventions: The Princely Furniture of the Roentgens (on view October 30, 2012–January 27, 2013).

Images courtesy of Museum für Angewandte Kunst, Frankfurt.

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Writing table (Bureau plat)

Jean-François Leleu (1729–1807, master 1764)

Date:: ca. 1780
Culture:: French
Medium:: Oak, veneered with mahogany, sycamore and holly; gilt bronze, leather
Dimensions:: 30-1/2 x 69-3/4 x 36-3/8 in. (77.5 x 177.2 x 92.4 cm)
Classification:: Woodwork
Credit Line:: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman, 1972
Accession Number:: 1972.284.6

This artwork is not on display

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Signature: J.F. LELEU, JME (stamped beneath left-hand side rail toward back)
Provenance

W. Angerstein, Esq. ; Baroness Nellie Lisa Helles Burton (until 1954; sale, Christie's, London, April 29, 1954, lot 113) ; Viscount Ednam (until 1958; sale, Sotheby's, London, May 16, 1958, lot 145) ; Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman (until 1972; to MMA)
See also
Who
Jean-François Leleu (2)
What
Metal (59,364)

Copper alloy (16,630)

Bronze (11,628)

Gilt (9,043)

Wood (7,651)

Leather (5,761)

Furniture (5,725)

Plate (2,675)

Woodwork (2,582)

Ormolu (1,683)

Oak (1,089)

Mahogany (974)

Tables (974)

Case furniture (874)

Desks (193)

Sycamore (91)

Holly (62)

Writing tables (41)

Writing desks (22)

Bureaux plats (4)

Plats (4)
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
France, 1600–1800 A.D.
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Demonstration of the Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

Writing table (Bureau plat)

Jean-François Leleu (1729–1807, master 1764)

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Demonstration of the Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

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Writing table (Bureau plat)

Jean-François Leleu (1729–1807, master 1764)

Met Media

Met Kids

Met Store