Collection Online as of June 2, 2023

Concealed Drawer for a Globe Work Table (Globustisch)

c. 1810–15

Part of a set. See all set records

Austria, Vienna

Burl walnut veneer, mahogany, ebony, satinwood, gilt wood, painted wood

Overall: 5.3 x 8.5 x 6 cm (2 1/16 x 3 3/8 x 2 3/8 in.)

Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley Collection Gift 2020.199.f

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The top half of the globe rotates upward to reveal hidden compartments for sewing tools, threads, and unfinished fabric pieces.

Description

Work tables resembling globes were the usual form for a lady's sewing or writing table around 1800 in Austria. Combining moving parts, secret compartments, and highly finished decoration, these tables were also a way for the cabinetmaker to show off his skill. The tripod supports and temple-like architectural quality of both the exterior and interior decoration reflect the fashionable taste for neoclassical style, or Biedermeier as it was called in Austria, where Vienna was the center of such elaborate furniture production.

Provenance

by 2004

Private Collection, Switzerland, sold to Bernd Goeckler Antiques

by 2004

(Bernd Goeckler Antiques, Inc., New York, NY, sold to Hiedemann Fine Art)

December 2004

(Hiedemann Fine Art, Richmond, VA, sold to Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley)

2004–2020

Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley, Cleveland, OH

2020

Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley, Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art

2020–

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Exhibition history

Impressionism to Modernism: The Keithley Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 11, 2022-January 8, 2023).