Thursday, November 18, 2010

My Nineteenth Century Dining Table

Image borrowed from Bing


My Nineteenth Century Dining Table

Description read:
A 19th Century Louis XVI style, mahogany and marquetry dining table, attributed to the famous Parisian cabinet maker Haentges Frères. The frieze is beautifully inlaid with entrelac and paterae marquetry of tulipwood, boxwood and amaranth, and the legs have finely cast gilt-bronze mounts. The brass catches underneath are stamped E.T.S.C.D.G.V.F. A PARIS. The two central leaves have been replaced with new leaves which have been made by hand to a very high standard and which are almost indistinguishable from the original sections. 292cm wide x 129cm deep x 74cm high,(115" wide x 51" deep x 29" high)

A historical masterpiece
Covered in oil cloth
Expected to protect
One on top of the other
Forming a sticky seal,
Leaving its residue.

Peeling and peeling
Each layer exposing
Obscurity and toil
Years of covering up
postures and impressions
Hoping to find
Beauty beneath unspoiled .

And if spoiled praying that
Restoration is possible.

Kristen Haskell

Posted over on her site Living in the Middle
Listed as #10 over on Magpie Tales 41

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