Center Table

With its profusion of scrolls punctuated by carved and pierced fruit and flowers, this center table exemplifies the fashionable Rococo Revival style, variously described at the time as "Modern French" or "Antique French." It likely was made in John Henry Belter’s New York City cabinetmaking shop. Center tables were focal points of mid-nineteenth-century parlors. The marble tops provided a durable surface on which to place oil lamps and beverages as well as books or other objects for display. The brass castors on the table’s feet facilitated easy movement across the room to accommodate a range of activities and gatherings.