Table
1700-1725 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Object Type
This card table is designed to fold in half for storage against the wall. The supportive corner cabriole legs dispensed with the need for stretchers between the legs and created more room for the seated players. From about 1711 to 1750 the form of the card table changed very little.
Ownership & Use
Card tables opened up when required for use in the front parlour of the terraced house, or the drawing room or saloon of the grander metropolitan or country house. Four players can comfortably sit with their legs under the table and play cards without revealing their hands to each other.
Social Class
Card games were played by the upper and middle classes for education, amusement and money. The small sunken well on each side of the table could house the coins won by each player.Cards were the chief evening activity, as lighting was often too poor to read for long after dark. Cards were used for instruction in a wide range of subjects. Knowledge of the rules of fashionable games was taught in the mid-18th century by gaming masters. George II and Queen Caroline were devoted card players, the king's favourite game was 'commerce' and the queen's 'quadrille'.
This card table is designed to fold in half for storage against the wall. The supportive corner cabriole legs dispensed with the need for stretchers between the legs and created more room for the seated players. From about 1711 to 1750 the form of the card table changed very little.
Ownership & Use
Card tables opened up when required for use in the front parlour of the terraced house, or the drawing room or saloon of the grander metropolitan or country house. Four players can comfortably sit with their legs under the table and play cards without revealing their hands to each other.
Social Class
Card games were played by the upper and middle classes for education, amusement and money. The small sunken well on each side of the table could house the coins won by each player.Cards were the chief evening activity, as lighting was often too poor to read for long after dark. Cards were used for instruction in a wide range of subjects. Knowledge of the rules of fashionable games was taught in the mid-18th century by gaming masters. George II and Queen Caroline were devoted card players, the king's favourite game was 'commerce' and the queen's 'quadrille'.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Walnut, carved and veneered on oak |
Brief description | English 1700-20 |
Physical description | The following description has been transcribed from the original accession record of 1904. ENGLISH Early 18th Century. Card-table of oak, veneered with walnut and having legs of carved walnut. The square table top is covered with green cloth, each side having a concave receptacle and a plain circular panel at each corner. The under surface of the hinged portion is covered with green morocco leather; and the framework is also hinged, closing in such a way that one half with its two legs and sliding stretcher passes under the closed top. Each of the four cabriole legs terminates in a claw-and-ball foot and is carved above with a shell and pendant |
Dimensions |
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Gallery label |
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Summary | Object Type This card table is designed to fold in half for storage against the wall. The supportive corner cabriole legs dispensed with the need for stretchers between the legs and created more room for the seated players. From about 1711 to 1750 the form of the card table changed very little. Ownership & Use Card tables opened up when required for use in the front parlour of the terraced house, or the drawing room or saloon of the grander metropolitan or country house. Four players can comfortably sit with their legs under the table and play cards without revealing their hands to each other. Social Class Card games were played by the upper and middle classes for education, amusement and money. The small sunken well on each side of the table could house the coins won by each player.Cards were the chief evening activity, as lighting was often too poor to read for long after dark. Cards were used for instruction in a wide range of subjects. Knowledge of the rules of fashionable games was taught in the mid-18th century by gaming masters. George II and Queen Caroline were devoted card players, the king's favourite game was 'commerce' and the queen's 'quadrille'. |
Bibliographic reference | Benn, H.P and Shapland, H.P., The Nation's Treasures. Measured Drawings of Fine Old Furniture in the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent & co. Ld and Benn Brothers Ltd., 1910, p. 18, pl. 26. |
Collection | |
Accession number | 223-1904 |
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Record created | July 5, 2001 |
Record URL |
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