Not currently on display at the V&A

Pilaster

ca. 1855 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This pilaster and its pair were shown at the Paris International Exhibition in 1855. Their maker, Michel-Victor Cruchet, was a celebrated carver, who supplied many pieces of furniture to the households of both King Louis-Philippe and Emperor Napoleon III.

Carving was extremely fashionable throughout Europe from about 1840 to 1870. The curators of the newly formed South Kensington Museum, which later became the V&A, bought many pieces from the various international exhibitions of the period. Their declared intention was to show these as examples of excellent craftsmanship, with the aim of improving the skills of British woodcarvers. At the time, woodcarving was practised as a craft by both men and women, though most carvers in commercial workshops were men. This pilaster, shown on the left of the image, is carved with the date of the exhibition and the painted cartouche shows a figure of Minerva, goddess of the arts.


Object details

Category
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 3 parts.

  • Pilaster
  • Pilaster Base
  • Pilaster Top
Materials and techniques
Carved limewood, with painting <i>en grisaille</i> on canvas
Brief description
Of carved limewood in Louis XIV style, with arabesques and a central painted cartouche showing Minerva
Physical description
Pilaster of carved limewood, in Louis XIV style, with arabesque ornament and naturalistic carving of birds and cupids. The central cartouche is painted en grisaille with a figure of the Roman goddess Minerva, patroness of the arts. A tablet above is carved with the date '1855'.
Dimensions
  • Height: 383.1cm
  • Width: 66cm
Dimensions taken from departmental catalogue. Not checked on the object
Marks and inscriptions
  • 1855 (Carved on tablet on upper half of pilaster)
  • CRUCHET Sculpteur Rue Ntre Dme de Lorette Paris (Carved into cartouche below painting)
Gallery label
TWO PILASTERS Manufacturer: Michel-Victor Cruchet Paris: about 1855 Carved limewood with applied paintings on canvas 2714&a-1856 These pilasters were purchased from the Paris 1855 Exhibition for £240 when they were described as 'in the style of Louis XIV'. In 1856 Cruchet, a famous ornamental sculptor, decorated the Emperor Napoleon III's petit salon at the Château de Saint Cloud in the Louis XVI style. One is dated and signed 'CRUEHET Sculpteur rue Ntre. Dme. de Lorette Paris', the other signed CRUCHET Sculpteur Paris'.(pre 1990)
Subjects depicted
Summary
This pilaster and its pair were shown at the Paris International Exhibition in 1855. Their maker, Michel-Victor Cruchet, was a celebrated carver, who supplied many pieces of furniture to the households of both King Louis-Philippe and Emperor Napoleon III.

Carving was extremely fashionable throughout Europe from about 1840 to 1870. The curators of the newly formed South Kensington Museum, which later became the V&A, bought many pieces from the various international exhibitions of the period. Their declared intention was to show these as examples of excellent craftsmanship, with the aim of improving the skills of British woodcarvers. At the time, woodcarving was practised as a craft by both men and women, though most carvers in commercial workshops were men. This pilaster, shown on the left of the image, is carved with the date of the exhibition and the painted cartouche shows a figure of Minerva, goddess of the arts.
Collection
Accession number
2714:1 to 3-1856

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Record createdJune 1, 2001
Record URL
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