Cabinet
1800-1830 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Straw marquetry was popular from about 1780 in both France and England. Most of the surviving pieces were made in commercial workshops but it was also made by amateurs. Some pieces were certainly made by French prisoners of war in England between about 1800 and 1815, but not as many as is often claimed. The straw (some dyed to vivid colours) was split and flattened, then glued onto sheets of paper, on which the design had been drawn. This little cabinet, in the form of a roll-top desk without legs, is covered all over in small-scale trellised motifs, which relate to the kind of ornament used in wood marquetry slightly earlier. The design is ambitious but the workmanship is not high and it is possible that this was made by an amateur - even, perhaps, a prisoner.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 13 parts.
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| Materials and techniques | Pine, veneered in straw marquetry |
| Brief description | Cabinet, in the form of a miniature roll-top desk without legs, veneered all over in straw marquetry, France, 1800-1830 |
| Physical description | A table cabinet in the form of a miniature roll-top desk, without legs, decorated all over with straw marquetry in abstract geometric shapes. Comprised of three distinct segments, the top, the middle and base. Top: Hinged top with metal catch. Inner lid decorated with rectangular mirror flanked by identical panels of straw marquetry both featuring a paper basket of flowers with roses. This section contains a removable shallow tray, divided into two lided compartments. Middle: A roll-top lifts up to show middle section. Comprised of two small draws with turned ivory or bone handles below triangular mirrors. Drawers are entirely veneered with straw marquetry and the frame is lined with red paper. Below the drawers is a removable tray with six lidded compartments. The compartments have glazed lids which are square, rectangular or octagonal, hinged with ribbon and edged with paper. Bottom: External flap levers down to reveal square diamond mirror flanked by two sets of drawers, surmounting a large base drawer. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Given by Mrs Greswolde-Williams and Miss Moon |
| Summary | Straw marquetry was popular from about 1780 in both France and England. Most of the surviving pieces were made in commercial workshops but it was also made by amateurs. Some pieces were certainly made by French prisoners of war in England between about 1800 and 1815, but not as many as is often claimed. The straw (some dyed to vivid colours) was split and flattened, then glued onto sheets of paper, on which the design had been drawn. This little cabinet, in the form of a roll-top desk without legs, is covered all over in small-scale trellised motifs, which relate to the kind of ornament used in wood marquetry slightly earlier. The design is ambitious but the workmanship is not high and it is possible that this was made by an amateur - even, perhaps, a prisoner. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | W.66:1 to 13-1927 |
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| Record created | July 6, 2006 |
| Record URL |
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