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Demonstration of the Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

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Art Object
Program Information

Demonstration of the Roentgens' Dressing Table (Poudreuse)

Program information

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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Armchair (one of a pair)

Claude Chevigny  (master 1768–88)

Date:
ca. 1774–93
Culture:
French (Paris)
Medium:
Carved and gilded beechwood; modern silk brocade
Dimensions:
Each 40-1/4 x 26 x 24 in. (102.2 x 66.0 x 61.0 cm)
Classification:
Woodwork
Credit Line:
Gift of Mrs. Byron C. Foy, 1953
Accession Number:
53.217.4

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 524

120056270

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