Stucco Table
Italian, circa 1790-1810
Scagliola and Stucco
Height: 79cm Width: 75cm Depth: 55cm
A highly distinctive and possibly unique games table. The rectangular top is inlaid in scagliola with a central chequerboard. The base is particularly unusual - wooden in construction but entirely sheathed in ornamental stucco, modelled in deep relief with scrolling foliage and classical ornament, all heightened with parcel gilding.
The decorated cabriole legs lend the piece a wonderfully fluid silhouette, while the whole stands confidently on lion's paw feet, joined by a serpentine stretcher centred by a rosette. A striking and highly unusual statement piece.
This table clearly reflects the hand of a highly skilled artisan. The combination of scagliola inlay and richly modelled ornamental stucco suggests a maker confident in multiple disciplines - marble stimulation, relief modelling and decorative finishing. Rather than a conventional commission, the piece may have been intended to demonstrate the craftsman's technical range and artistic ambition - perhaps even a showpiece of a workshop or exhibition.
Scagliola and Stucco
Height: 79cm Width: 75cm Depth: 55cm
A highly distinctive and possibly unique games table. The rectangular top is inlaid in scagliola with a central chequerboard. The base is particularly unusual - wooden in construction but entirely sheathed in ornamental stucco, modelled in deep relief with scrolling foliage and classical ornament, all heightened with parcel gilding.
The decorated cabriole legs lend the piece a wonderfully fluid silhouette, while the whole stands confidently on lion's paw feet, joined by a serpentine stretcher centred by a rosette. A striking and highly unusual statement piece.
This table clearly reflects the hand of a highly skilled artisan. The combination of scagliola inlay and richly modelled ornamental stucco suggests a maker confident in multiple disciplines - marble stimulation, relief modelling and decorative finishing. Rather than a conventional commission, the piece may have been intended to demonstrate the craftsman's technical range and artistic ambition - perhaps even a showpiece of a workshop or exhibition.