Images(2)

Pier table

Date1745-1760

OriginEngland

MediumPrimary: deal, gesso, gilt, marble top; Secondary: oak base; deal backboard.

DimensionsOH: 33 1/2"; OW: 54"; OD: 23 3/4".

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1958-474

DescriptionPier table. Rectangular marble top with canted front corners; elaborate, gilded frame consisting of carved and pierced skirt at front with central pendent cartouche of cabochon on shell background flanked by a pair of C-scrolls with foliage below; central cartouche flanked by carved arches with wavy scrollwork on face and bands of floral and leaf garlands below extending from cartouche to legs; side skirts of similar design, containing single arch with leaf garland below; large S-scrolled legs at front corners, set at angle; each leg surounded by a Chinaman's head, carved with flowers and foliage and terminating in a scrolled foot with acanthus leaves on top; legs braced and connected near base by an arched cross-stretcher with large, central rococo shell ; the whole supported on a rectangular plinth with canted front corners and a carved and gilded upper edge on front and sides.
Label TextThe rococo style was often termed the “French taste” or the “modern style” in mid-18th-century England. At its height, the fashion generated objects of an unrestrained, theatrical nature, as seen in this effusive gilt pier table. Here the unidentified maker combined rococo and chinoiserie details in a way not often encountered on a single object. This table sports undulating, asymmetrical rococo shells and scrolls on its base and skirt, but stands on legs fronted by chinoiserie busts of stereotyped Asian men. The richly colored marble top added to the effect. Placed beneath an equally elaborate and asymmetrical looking glass, the effect was impressive.
Inscribed"Crews Hill" (or Hall) in chalk on underside of bottom board.