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Unknown Maker, German

Writing Desk (Schreibtisch)
Now On View

Maker

Unknown Maker, German

Culture

German

Title

Writing Desk (Schreibtisch)

Year

ca. 1590

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

unidentified softwood

Geography

Place Made: Germany, probably Augsburg

Dimensions

45.1 x 60.6 x 33.3 cm (17 3/4 x 23 7/8 x 13 1/8 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Anonymous gift

Object Number

75.023

Type

Publications

Exhibition History

European Galleries
Sep 02, 2017

Label copy

This elegant lockable cabinet offered its owner ten drawers for securing valuables and a surface for writing. Its elaborate scenes suggest it was prominently displayed. The fantastical architectural design most likely came from print sources such as Lorenz Stöer’s 1567 Geometria et Perspectiva, subtitled “Herein are a few ruined buildings, useful to cabinetmakers working in inlaid wood.”

Close looking reveals that the maker positioned the woodgrain to enhance the composition. The grain travels across the sky in each scene, and the architectural elements gain height through its vertical placement. The shading on the music sheets on the front interior was achieved by burning those pieces of marquetry in hot sand.

The Object of Ornament
European Design, 1480-1800
Apr 12, 2002 – Jul 07, 2002
A Case for Boxes
Oct 16, 1980 – Nov 16, 1980

Image use

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

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, German
Writing Desk (Schreibtisch), ca. 1590
Walnut, burled walnut, ebonized walnut, satinwood, pear wood, and pine with iron
45.1 x 60.6 x 33.3 cm (17 3/4 x 23 7/8 x 13 1/8 inches)
Anonymous gift 75.023

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