Center table

Gustave Herter German (Stuttgart, principality of Württemberg)

ca. 1860

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 736

German-born and trained Gustave Herter produced this extraordinary center table around the time he established his own furniture and decorating firm at 547 Broadway. The robustly carved figural legs and bold, curvaceous form reflect Herter’s European training and sensibilities. The table’s delicate marquetry top, which may have been imported from Paris, speaks to the prevailing taste for French style among American patrons. Simultaneously, the four enigmatic and exoticized Native American female forms with gilded turtle breastplates suggest a desire to explore and formulate a national iconography.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Title: Center table
Maker: Gustave Herter (1830–1898)
Date: ca. 1860
Geography: Made in New York, New York, United States
Culture: American
Medium: Rosewood, rosewood veneer, maple, burled wood, ash (secondary wood), brass, and scagliola
Dimensions: 29 3/8 × 52 5/8 × 36 1/8 in. (74.6 × 133.7 × 91.8 cm)
Credit Line: Sansbury-Mills Fund, 2017
Object Number: 2017.135
Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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Armchair, Gustave Herter German (Stuttgart, principality of Württemberg), Walnut, original leather, modern velvet cushion, American — Armchair
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Manufacturer Tiffany & Co.
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Center Table, Pottier and Stymus Manufacturing Company, Rosewood, walnut, gilding, marble, brass, glazed ceramic tile, American — Center Table
Attributed to Pottier and Stymus Manufacturing Company
1870–75

Young Husband: First Marketing, Lilly Martin Spencer American, Oil on canvas, American — Young Husband: First Marketing
Lilly Martin Spencer
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Wardrobe, Herter Brothers American, Cherry, American — Wardrobe
Herter Brothers
1875–1883

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