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Gorham Manufacturing Company

Martelé Writing Table and Chair
Now On View

Description

Maker

Gorham Manufacturing Company (American, 1831-present), manufacturer
William Christmas Codman (English, 1839-1921), designer
Joseph Edward Straker (English, 1843-1912), silversmith
Franz Ziegler (German, 1869-1934), modeler
Potter and Company (American, active 1878-1910), cabinetmaker

Title

Martelé Writing Table and Chair

Year

1903

Medium

  • ebony,
  • mahogany,
  • boxwood,
  • redwood,
  • thuya wood,
  • ivory,
  • mother-of-pearl,
  • silver,
  • mirrored glass,
  • and gilded tooled leather

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

  • ebony,
  • Mahogany,
  • boxwood,
  • redwood,
  • thuya wood,
  • ivory,
  • mother-of-pearl,
  • silver,
  • mirrored glass,
  • and gilded tooled leather

Materials

leather, ivory, redwood, boxwood, mahogany, silver, reflective glass, mother of pearl, thuyawood, ebony

Geography

Place Made: Providence, Rhode Island

Dimensions

Table: 124 x 136.5 x 76 cm (48 13/16 x 53 3/4 x 29 15/16 inches); Chair: 76 x 46 x 63.5 cm (29 15/16 x 18 1/8 x 25 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Marks: Table marked on back of mirror: [lion] [anchor] G STERLING CCX
Chair marked on lower back of backrest: [lion] [anchor] G / CCY / STERLING
Signed inside center drawer: "W C Codman 1903."

Signed:"WC Codman 1903", burnished along top right edge of center drawer.

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Frederick B. Thurber

Object Number

58.095ab

Type

  • Furniture

Provenance

1915-, Purchased by Lady Esher (Antoinette Heckscher)[1]; 1954, Purchased at Christie's London by Mr. & Mrs. Fredrick B. Thurber[2], Providence, Rhode Island and given to the Rhode Island School of Design.

Projects & Publications

Publications

  • Books

A Handbook of the Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design

  • Books

American Furniture In Pendleton House

  • Books

Selected Works

  • Books

Gorham Silver Designing Brilliance 1850-1970

Articles

The Long Road Home, The Gorham Writing Table and Chair

Elizabeth A. Williams
Curator of Decorative Arts and Design

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Gorham Silver
Designing Brilliance 1850-1970
May 03, 2019 – Dec 01, 2019

Label copy

Debuted at the 1904 world’s fair in St. Louis, this writing table and chair were designed to be showstoppers in a crowd of stunning objects. More than 10,000 hours of labor, 75 pounds of silver, and a panoply of exotic materials make up this unique set, which deftly melds sinuous European Art Nouveau floral and figural motifs, French Rococo forms from the 1700s, and traditional Hispano-Moresque designs. Intricately wrought symbolism is found in the daytime poppies and the night owl below the mirror and the decoration of the legs, each representing one of the four seasons, with female masks surrounded by lilies, roses, chrysanthemums, and pine cones. The table and chair won the fair’s grand prize in silversmithing.

18th and 19th-Century American Galleries
Jun 19, 2015

Label copy

Debuted at the 1904 world’s fair in St. Louis, this writing table and chair were designed to be showstoppers in a crowd of stunning objects. More than 10,000 hours of labor, 75 pounds of silver, and a panoply of materials make up this unique set, which deftly melds sinuous European Art Nouveau floral and figural motifs, French Rococo forms from the 1700s, and traditional Hispano-Moresque designs. Intricately wrought symbolism is found in the daytime poppies and the night owl below the mirror and the decoration of the legs, each representing one of the four seasons, with female masks surrounded by lilies, roses, chrysanthemums, and pine cones. The table and chair won the fair’s grand prize in silversmithing.

Charles Pendleton House
Jan 02, 2015
Making It In America
Oct 11, 2013 – Feb 09, 2014

Label copy

Elizabeth A. Williams, curator of decorative arts: Commanding as much attention now as when they debuted at the 1904 World’s Fair, this writing table and chair were conceived as showstoppers in a crowd of stunning objects made by Gorham’s competitors. More than 10,000 hours of labor, 75 pounds of silver, and a panoply of exotic materials make up this unique set, which deftly melds sinuous European Art Nouveau floral and figural motifs, 18th-century French Rococo forms, and traditional Hispano-Moresque designs. Intricately wrought symbolism-seen in the daytime poppies and the night owl below the mirror and the decoration of the legs, each representing one of the four seasons, with female masks surrounded by lilies, roses, chrysanthemums, and pine cones-attest to the complexity of Gorham’s design, which brought them the Grand Prize in silversmithing.

Burr Sebring, designer and silversmith: This writing table and chair represent a golden age for Gorham. In 1899 the company moved into a new plant, and with the new design direction from William Christmas Codman, Gorham enjoyed a perfect matrix of leadership and artistry. Codman turned over his rather cursory sketches for the silversmiths, chasers, modelers, inlayers, leather carvers, and cabinetmakers to interpret and execute in three dimensions. Remarkable skill and collaboration is particularly evident in the leaves on the desk's surface, where the ebony and rosewood, which are very challenging woods, were carved away to allow the inlay of silver.

As the director of design at Gorham from 1973 to 1983, I always felt that we were working in the shadow of this moment, which was characterized by outstanding dedication to craftsmanship, hard work, and the time required to create what had never been made before.

An American Idyll
19th-Century Paintings and Decorative Arts
Apr 06, 2007 – Jan 06, 2008
  • More Exhibition History +

Related Objects

Related Objects

Gorham Manufacturing Company

Martelé Chair

Gorham Manufacturing Company

Martelé Writing Table

Gorham Manufacturing Company

Martelé Check Cutter

More objects +

Use & Feedback

Image use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use.

This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Gorham Manufacturing Company (American, 1831-present), manufacturer
William Christmas Codman (English, 1839-1921), designer
Joseph Edward Straker (English, 1843-1912), silversmith
Franz Ziegler (German, 1869-1934), modeler
Potter and Company (American, active 1878-1910), cabinetmaker
Martelé Writing Table and Chair, 1903
Ebony, mahogany, boxwood, redwood, thuya wood, ivory, mother-of-pearl, silver, mirrored glass, and gilded tooled leather
Table: 124 x 136.5 x 76 cm (48 13/16 x 53 3/4 x 29 15/16 inches)<br>Chair: 76 x 46 x 63.5 cm (29 15/16 x 18 1/8 x 25 inches)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Frederick B. Thurber 58.095ab

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We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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