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 Chapter?V?
 English?and?French?Case?Histories?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE?IN?ENGLAND?AND?FRANCE?
 DURING?THE?AGE?OF?ELEGANCE?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?193?
 ?
 ?
 On?the?cover:?
 ? Top?Picture:??This?is?reported?to?be?a?portrait?of?Thomas?Chippendale?the?senior,?
 however?this?has?not?been?verified?and?there?is?reason?to?believe?that?this?might?be?a?
 portrait?of?his?son.??This?portrait?could?have?been?executed?by?either?Thomas?Proctor?
 or?J.?T?Barber.???Currently?this?portrait?is?owned?by?The?Chippendale?Society???See?C.?
 Gilbert,?The?Life?and?Works?of?Thomas?Chippendale,?Vol?1,?Studio?Vista/Christies,?
 London,?1978,?p.?299.?And?p.?4?in?Volume?2.??(Taken?from?http://www.antique?
 marks.com/antique?terms?c.html???Accessed?03?March?2010).?
 ?
 ? Lower?Picture:??This?is?a?portrait?of?Jean?Henri?Riesener?seated?at?one?of?his?own?
 writing?tables.?This?portrait?was?by?Antoine?Vestier,?1786?(Mus?e?de?Versailles).?
 Taken?from?http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riesener???Accessed?03?March?2010).?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?194?
 ?
 ?
 V. CASE?HISTORIES?
 ?
 A. Introduction?
 ?
 This?chapter?details?the?ways?in?which?two?pieces?of?furniture???the?English?Harewood?
 Library?Table?by?Chippendale?and?a?French?secr?taire???abattant?(F302)?by?Riesener???were?
 made.?1?It?then?integrates?these?findings?with?what?we?know?of?the?culture?and?fashions?of?
 the?day?(as?discussed?previously).?
 ?
 The?chapter?begins?by?recapping?the?theoretical?approach.??This?is?followed?by?a?
 comprehensive?description?of?intrinsic?data?as?well?as?some?pertinent?background?
 information.??The?case?histories?follow,?discussing?in?turn?history,?constructional?methods,?
 materials?used,?stylistic?components?and?function;?together?with?a?number?of?special?topics?
 that?have?not?been?addressed?above.??As?wide?ranging?conclusion?section?will?be?presented?
 as?a?separate?chapter?(Chapter?VI,?p.?332).??
 ?
 The?primary?purpose?of?this?chapter?is?to?mark?out,?in?detail,?the?construction?techniques?
 used?to?make?both?the?Harewood?Library?Table?and?the?Riesener?secr?taire???abattant?F302?
 from?The?Wallace?Collection.???In?doing?this,?it?is?hoped?to?accomplish?two?objectives.??Firstly?
 to?begin?the?process?for?identifying?the?key?characteristics?that?defines?each?of?these?makers?
 of?fashionable?C18th?furniture.??As?will?be?discussed?in?the?next?chapter?(Chapter?VI,?p.?332,?
 this?is?but?the?start?of?this?process?as?there?are?a?number?of?other?areas?that?need?to?be?
 included?in?order?to?complete?this?task.??As?part?of?this?objective,?this?thesis?will?present?
 these?characteristics?in?a?format?that?will?then?be?useable?to?identify?other?pieces?of?similar?
 furniture?made?by?these?makers.???
 ?
 This?chapter?s?second?objective?was?to?take?the?first?step?towards?setting?up?an?objective?
 system?for?identifying?the?maker?of?any?particular?piece?of?furniture.??The?entire?system?
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 1?As?discussed?previously,?the?number?F302?is?referring?to?the?inventory?number?at?The?Wallace?Collection?
 Catalogue?by?Watson?in?1956?(See?F.?Watson,?Wallace?Collection?Catalogues.?Furniture,?William?Clowes,?
 London,?1956.)?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?195?
 ?
 would?consider?all?aspects?of?the?furniture?such?as?the?actual?metals?used?in?making?the?
 screws,?the?decorative?elements,?the?handles?and?hinges?and?the?locks,?identifying?the?dyes?
 that?were?used2?(if?any)?to?colour?the?wood,?analysis?of?both?the?surface?treatments?(the?
 varnish?or?other?surface?coatings)?and?the?glues3?that?were?used.???It?would?also?take?into?
 account?more?of?the?joints?by?either?taking?the?piece?apart?(at?the?time?of?conservation)?or?
 by?the?use?of?x?rays.??It?would?also?include?wood?identification?and?dendrochronology?to?
 determine?both?the?type?of?wood?as?well?as?when?and?where?it?was?sourced.???Because?of?
 financial?and?accessibility?limitations,?the?research?reported?in?this?thesis?was?limited?to?the?
 drawers,?the?internal?drawer?cavities,?overall?measurements,?observational?data?and?the?
 contents?of?files?covering?past?conservation?4efforts.??Where?available?the?work?conducted?
 by?prior?researchers?was?included.??One?example?was?an?extensive?application?of?XRF?
 technology5?that?was?used?to?identify?the?base?metals?used?in?the?ormolu?(while?this?was?in?
 the?files?at?The?Wallace?Collection,?prior?to?this?they?have?not?been?published.)??As?discussed?
 in?the?conclusion?section,?it?is?the?desire?of?this?author?to?conduct?this?subsequent?research.???
 ?
 From?these?two?sets?of?findings,?the?result?will?be?an?indispensable?tool?for?identifying?other?
 pieces?of?furniture?produced?by?these?two?makers?and?it?will?mark?the?start?of?the?process?to?
 learn?how?to?identify?furniture?made?by?a?variety?of?different?makers,?but?again,?this?is?but?a?
 first?step?much?in?the?way?of?expanding?and?re?defining?this?task?needs?to?be?accomplished?
 as?will?be?discussed?in?the?last?chapter?(Chapter?VI,?p.?332).??
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 2?The?recommended?approach?is?the?UV/VIS?absorbtion?spectrometry?which?is?a?a?non?destructive?method?for?
 dyes?identification?that?has?been?developed?by??Dr.?Heinrich?Piening??(reference:??(H.?Piening,?UV/VIS?
 Absorbtion?Spectrometry:?A?Non?Destructive?Method?For?Dyestuff?Identification,?Presented?at?conference:??
 Marquetry???Past?and?Present?2nd?Scandinavian?Symposium?on?Furniture?Technology?and?Design?Vadstena,?
 Sweden?May?10?12,?2007).?
 3?One?process?is?one?in?which?the?type?of?animal?used?is?identified?by?an?analysis?of?the?proteins?present?in?the?
 glues.??See:??A.?Heginbotham,?V.?Millay,?M.?Quick,?The?Use?of?Immunofluorescence?Microscopy?(IFM)?and?
 Enzyme?Linked?Immunosorbent?Assay?(ELISA)?as?Complementary?Techniques?for?Protein?Identification?in?
 Artists??Materials,?WAGPostprints,?2004,?Portland?Oregan.?
 4?The?process?for?selecting?these?two?particular?cabinetmakers?and?these?two?types?of?furniture?were?discussed?
 in?the?opening?chapter?(See?section?beginning?on?p.?25)?of?this?thesis.??
 5?These?XRF?technologies?essentially?involve?projecting?x?rays?on?to?the?ormolu?then?reading?the?resulting?
 pattern?of?energy?that?is?returning.??The?energy?produced?can?be?read?in?such?a?way?that?the?materials?can?be?
 identified?with?some?degree?of?accuracy.??As?shown?in?the?results,?two?measures?taken?off?the?same?piece?of?
 material?can?produce?slightly?different?findings,?however?the?major?ingredients?can?clearly?be?identified?and?to?
 a?large?degree?quantified.?See?for?example:?B.?Beckhoff,?B.?Kanngieber,?N.?Langhoff,?R.?Wedell,?H.?Wolf?(eds),?
 Handbook?of?Practical?X?Ray?Fluorescence?Analysis,?Springeer?Verlag?Berlin?Heidelberg,?Berlin,?2006.??
 ?
 These?tests?were?conducted?at?The?Wallace?Collection?on?their?C18th?furniture???
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?196?
 ?
 ?
 The?last?objective?of?this?chapter?is?to?look?for?what?clues?the?construction?of?these?pieces?
 provide?for?the?culture?of?the?late?C18th?in?these?two?countries.??
 ?
 B. Theoretical?Overview??
 The?approach?taken?in?this?chapter?follows?Fleming?and?Zimmerman?and?the?methods?
 described?in?detail?in?the?introduction.6??The?following?recaps?the?steps?in?this?process:??
 ?
 ? IDENTIFICATION:??To?identify?and?detail?the?key?constructional?characteristics?of?
 these?two?cabinetmakers?
 ? EVALUATION:??To?evaluate?these?two?pieces?relative?to?each?other?and?relative?to?
 similar?pieces?made?by?the?same?workshops.?
 ? CULTURAL?ANALYSIS:??To?relate?these?two?pieces?of?furniture?to?the?cultural?trends?in?
 England?and?France?in?this?time.??
 ? INTERPRETATION:??To?analyse?how?these?two?pieces?of?furniture?relate?more?broadly?
 to?one?another?and?to?the?wider?social?context???
 ?
 A??Structural?analysis?,?as?Zimmerman?calls?it,?will?be?conducted?as?an?overlay?of?each?of?the?
 last?three?steps.?
 ?
 The?intended?outcome?of?this?analysis?is?intended?to?provide?the?following:??
 ?
 ? A?greater?understanding?of?the?standard?practices?of?the?workshops?of?both?
 Chippendale?and?Riesener,?from?which?we?can?develop?an?improved?model?for?
 identifying?each?workshop?s?products?and?a?base?for?evaluating?new?pieces?of?
 furniture?which?may?relate?to?them.??
 ?
 ? A?greater?understanding?of?how?artefacts?can?inform?us?about?the?important?
 concepts?and?cultural?events?of?the?late?18th?Century.??This?should?reinforce?the?
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 6?This?model?is?based?on?that?put?forth?in?E.?Fleming,?Artefact?Study:??A?Proposed?Model,?The?Winterthur?
 Portfolio,?Vol.?9,?1974,?pp.?153?173?and?was?adjusted?by?the?writings?of?P.?Zimmerman?as?detailed?in??
 P.?Zimmerman,?Workmanship?as?Evidence,?The?Winterthur?Portfolio,?Vol.?16,?No.?4,?Winter,?1981,?pp.?283?307.?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?197?
 ?
 importance?of?studying?objects?to?better?understand?of?our?culture?and?the?way?in?
 which?it?operates.??
 ?
 C.? Identification?and?Evaluation?
 ?
 What?follows?here?is?an?extensive?series?of?measurements?and?descriptions,?together?with?a?
 review?of?all?the?available?information?in?order?to?understand?how?these?pieces?were?
 designed?and?constructed.??Measurements?were?also?taken?on?similar?pieces.??While?some?
 concluding?remarks?will?be?reserved?for?later,?identification?and?some?aspects?of?the?
 evaluation?will?be?combined?here.?
 ?
 In?the?case?of?Chippendale?s?Harewood?desk,?all?other?pieces?of?writing?furniture?by?him?that?
 were?available?for?viewing?were?subject?to?the?same?level?of?measurement.??Similarly?for?
 Riesener,?the?secr?taire???abattant?used?as?the?central?focus?of?this?study?was?compared?to?
 all?other?secr?taire???abattants?that?were?available?for?study.7???Chippendale?was?also?known?
 to?have?made?two?so?called?a??Lady?Secretaries??in?the?style?of?the?secr?taire???abattant.?8?
 Structurally?similar,?one?was?subject?to?the?same?level?of?detailed?scrutiny?in?order?that?it?
 might?be?directly?compared?to?the?Riesener?work?and?provide?additional?insight.?9??
 ?
 Following?is?a?chart?listing?the?furniture?studied?in?detail?for?this?research?(note?that?the?
 entries?in?grey?are?the?primary?pieces?addressed?in?this?research.)???
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 7?There?was?one?known?exception?to?this,?which?is?the?Japanned?secr?taire???abattant?by?Riesener?which?is?
 currently?at?the?Metropolitan?Museum?in?New?York?City?(See?Page?454?in?Appendix?C.).???
 8?In?order?to?reduce?any?confusion,?these?two?pieces?will?be?referred?to?as?secr?taire???abattants?since?they?are?
 essentially?the?same?design?as?those?produced?in?France.??In?all?likelihood?the?design?for?these?two?Chippendale?
 pieces?were?inspired?by?the?French?models.??
 9?A.?Coleridge,?A?Tale?of?Two?Secretaires,?Christies?Sales?Catalogue?for?sale?3?July?1994,?London,?1994?(Taken?
 from?Proof?for?Job?No:??4897?Christies?Creative?Services,?in?Harewood?House?Files.)?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?198?
 ?
 Table?5?1?
 Furniture?Included?in?Detailed?Analysis10?
 Maker? Name/Description?of?
 Furniture11?
 Current?Location/Comments?
 Harewood?Library?Table?? Temple?Newsom?(near?Leeds)???the?primary?object?of?
 this?study.??
 Dumphries?Library?Table? Dumfries?(National?Trust),?Scotland.??
 Wilton?House?Library?Table? Wilton?House?(National?Trust),?England.??
 Nostell?Priory?Library?Table? Nostell?Priory,?Leeds,?England.?
 Corsham?Court?Library?Table.? Corsham?Court?near?Wiltshire,?England.???This?piece?was?
 probably?made?by?Chippendale?s?son?who?took?over?the?
 business?after?the?elder?Chippendale?died?in?1779.??
 Harewood?Dressing?Table? V?&?A,?London.?Although?this?is?not?a?Library?table,?it?had?
 some?very?interesting?characteristics?that?made?it?useful?
 for?this?study12.??
 Gerrick?Dressing?Table? ?Cambridge.??Although?this?is?not?a?Library?table,?it?had?
 some?very?interesting?characteristics?that?made?it?useful?
 for?this?study.??
 T.?
 Chippendale?
 Harewood?Secr?taire????Abattant? Harewood?House?(Leeds).?Although?this?is?not?a?Library?
 table,?because?it?was?a?secr?taire???abattant?it?was?very?
 useful?for?making?comparisons?to?the?similar?furniture?by?
 Riesener.?
 Secr?taire???Abattant?F30213? The?Wallace?Collection?(Inventory?no.?F302)?in?London???
 the?primary?object?of?this?study.?
 Secr?taire???Abattant?F303? The?Wallace?Collection?(Inventory?no.?F303),?London.?
 Secr?taire???Abattant?F300? The?Wallace?Collection?(Inventory?no.?F300),?London.?One?
 of?8?identified?as?being?modelled?after?Oeben.14?
 Waddesdon?Manor?Secr?taire???
 Abattant??
 Waddesdon?Manor?(near?Aylesbury).??Similar?to?F300?at?
 The?Wallace?and?another?one?of?8?identified?as?being?
 modelled?after?Oeben.??
 Les?Arts?D?cratifs???Paris?
 Secr?taire???Abattant?
 Mus?e?des?Arts?D?coratifs,?Paris?
 ?(Inventory?number?GR?824)?
 J.?H.?Riesener?
 Versailles?Secr?taire???Abattant? Versailles?(Near?Paris).??
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 10?More?details?about?each?of?these?pieces?as?well?as?other?known?pieces?that?were?made?by?these?two?
 cabinetmakers?are?available?in?Appendix?C:?Overview?of?Library?Tables?by?Chippendale?and?Secr?taire???
 Abattants?by?Riesener.??
 11?The?primary?pieces?for?these?case?studies?are?represented?in?grey?boxes.??
 12?While?this?will?be?discussed?in?more?detail?later?in?this?chapter?(See?p.?324),?the?interesting?characteristics?
 concerned?how?this?particular?piece?was?not?consistent?with?the?other?pieces?by?Chippendale?that?were?
 included?in?this?study.??
 13?In?most?instances,?this?secr?taire???abattant?will?be?referred?to?by?the?inventory?number?F302.??There?will?be?
 exceptions,?such?as?the??primary?object??the??primary?secr?taire???abattant?by?Riesener,?but?even?they?should?
 be?clearly?referenced.?These,?for?example,?included?the?use?of?a?lower?quality?of?wood,?the?use?of?different?
 kinds?of?locks,?the?use?of?different?dovetails,?the?lower?quality?of?marquetry?cuts.?
 14?This?classification?has?been?used?by?a?number?of?authors,?but?fully?described?in?Christies?Catalogues?
 whenever?one?of?these?pieces?of?furniture?come?up?for?auction?(See?No?Author?Given,?Christies?Sales?Catalogue?
 for?July?5?&?7,?2000:??Works?of?Art?from?The?Wernher?Collection,?Christies,?London,?2000,?and?P.?Hughes,?The?
 Wallace?Collection?Catalogue?of?Furniture,?Vol?II.,Trustees?of?the?Wallace?Collection,?London,?1996.).??This?
 classification?will?be?described?more?completely?within?this?document?at?a?later?in?this?Chapter,?see?p.?250.)?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?199?
 ?
 ?
 As?stated?above,?these?pieces?represent?all?of?the?writing?tables?(by?Chippendale)?and?
 secr?taire???abattants?(by?Riesener)?available?to?the?public.??Chippendale?was?thought?to?
 have?produced?approximately?10?Library?tables?(to?the?best?of?current?knowledge)???5?were?
 included?in?this?research.15??According?to?the?Journal?du?Garde?Meuble,?Riesener?made?51?
 secr?taire???abattant?for?the?Royal?family.??In?this?study?6?are?included?for?the?comparisons???
 this?leaves?45.?Appendix?G,?Page?561?provides?more?details?about?the?different?secr?taire???
 abattants?that?were?produced?by?Riesener.16?The?problem?of?such?a?seemingly?small?sample?
 will?be?discussed?later?in?the?conclusion?section?(Chapter?VI,?p.?332).??
 ?
 The?process?of?identification?and?evaluation?will?begin?by?relating?the?known?historical?facts?
 around?these?two?pieces?of?furniture.??The?next?step?provides?much?new?knowledge?by?
 detailing?the?overall?measurements,?together?with?observations,?measurements?and?
 pictures?that?relate?to?the?construction?of?the?drawers?and?other?components.17??However,?
 before?discussing?the?overall?measurements,?just?how?specific?measurements?taken?and?
 why?they?needed?to?be?taken?is?discussed.?Clearly?an?approach?had?to?be?determined?that?
 could?be?applied?across?all?of?the?different?pieces?included?in?the?case?study.??A?discussion?
 follows?around?how?library?tables?and?secr?taire???abattants?were?constructed?in?general.??
 ?
 Two?drawings?of?the?different?approaches?that?Chippendale?used?to?construct?his?library?
 tables?are?also?provided?here?to?offer?insight?into?the?problem?of?establishing?criteria?for?
 measurement18.??????
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 15?See?C.?Gilbert,?The?Life?and?Works?of?Thomas?Chippendale?for?pictures?and?summaries?of?billings?for?Thomas?
 Chippendale.?These?pieces?of?furniture?are?summarized?in?Appendix?C:??Overview,?see?page?471.???The?numbers?
 presented?here?were?taken?primarily?by?reviewing?the?billings?for?each?of?the?houses?that?Chippendale?worked?
 for?and?by?cross?checking?with?the?list?of?furniture?that?is?also?included?in?the?same?text.??Of?course,?if?any?other?
 piece?were?identified?in?the?literature?it?would?have?been?considered?for?inclusion?in?this?listing.?
 16??These?counts?were?taken?from?the?Journal?du?Garde?Meuble.??See:??Various?Authors,?Journal?du?Garde?
 Meuble,?1761?1784,?These?are?detailed?listings?of?all?furniture?that?was?either?delivered,?ordered?or?repaired?in?
 service?for?France's?Royal?Households.??Copies?are?located?in?The?Wallace?Collection?Library?and?are?available?in?
 France's?archives.??Again,?as?many?as?were?identified?in?the?literature?reviewed?for?this?paper?are?presented?in?
 Appendix?2:??Overview?of?and?Secr?taire???abattants?by?Riesener?and?Chippendale?and?Library?Tables?by?
 Chippendale.??
 17?The?actual?documents?used?for?collecting?this?information?is?provided?for?in?Appendix?K:??Data?Collection?
 Documents.?
 18?Obviously,?the?best?way?to?take?these?measurements?would?be?to?use?a?laser?scanner?however?the?
 equipment?needed?nor?the?funding?necessary?for?this?were?not?available?for?this?research.?See?for?example?a?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?200?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 use?of?laser?scanners?in?support?of?architectural?research:??K.?Cain,?Drawing?Accurate?Ground?Plans?from?Laser?
 Scan?Data,?Institute?for?the?Study?and?Integration?of?Graphical?Heritage?Techniques?(INSIGHT),?Web?site:?
 www.insightdigital.org/PDF%20papers/Plans.pdf?Accessed?28?December?2010.)?
 ?Figures?5?1?and?5?2:??Two?different?constructional?approaches?used?by?Chippendale?for?his?library?tables.???????
 Library?Table???Middle?Drawer?Version?(B)?
 ?
 ?
 Library?Table???Complete?Top?Drawer?Version?(A)?
 Top?
 Top?Drawer?
 ??????Section?
 Pedestals?
 Plinth?
 ?
 Top?
 Pedestals?
 Plinth?
 ?
 Middle?Drawer?
 Section?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?201?
 ?
 As?shown?above,?there?were?two?different?ways?in?which?Chippendale?constructed?a?library?
 table,?which?led?to?problems?around?how?measurements?might?best?be?taken.??While?this?
 variation?presented?other?problems?in?making?comparisons,?for?the?moment?only?the?
 methodological?issues?will?be?addressed.?19???
 ?
 In?both?constructional?approaches?there?are?four?major?components?of?the?library?table?that?
 need?to?be?identified.??On?top?of?both?Version?A?and?Version?B,?is?a?large?flat?platform,?which?
 provides?the?primary?writing?surface,?which?is?called?quite?simply?the?Top.??20?The?two?
 variants?differ?in?how?the?pedestals?and?the?section?immediately?under?the?Top?were?
 designed?and?constructed.??The?Complete?Top?Drawer?Section?(Version?A)?has?one?section?
 that?includes?a?top?drawer?which?stretches?the?entire?way?across?the?top,?pulling?out?to?the?
 front?or?occasionally?with?flanking?drawers?pulled?to?the?side.??The?next?components?
 measured?are?the?pedestals?themselves?(there?are?two?pedestals?to?all?library?tables,?and?a?
 plinth?(attached?to?the?bottom?of?each?pedestal).??The?version?labelled?the?Middle?Drawer?
 Version?(Version?B)?has?two?taller?pedestals?that?were?connected?together?near?the?top?by?a?
 drawer?that?acted?as?a?bridge,?spanning?the?gap?between?the?two?pedestals.??This?approach?
 differs?in?that?the?pedestals?include?an?extra?drawer.??In?the?centre,?in?the?space?between?
 the?two?pedestals,?the?single?drawer?was?added,?making?a?line?of?three?drawers?underneath?
 the?top.??When?discussing?the?measurements?the?two?different?types?will?not?be?compared?
 directly?as?potentially?this?would?be?misleading.????
 ?
 Of?the?writing?tables?studied?in?detail?for?this?thesis,?three?used?the?Complete?Top?Drawer?
 Section?version???Version?A.?The?Harewood?Library?Table?falls?into?this?set?as?well?as?the?
 tables?at?Wilton?and?Dumfries?House.?The?two?that?had?the?Middle?Drawer?Insert????Version?
 B,?included?the?tables?at?Nostell?Priory?and?Corsham?Court.???Whether?Chippendale?custom?
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 19?The?two?different?approaches?suggest?that?Chippendale?did?not?have?a?single?constructional?approach?to?
 making?this?type?of?furniture.??This?adds?an?additional?support?to?the?conclusion?that?Chippendale?did?not?think?
 in?terms?of?fitting?preset?patterns?to?a?situation?but?rather?the?opposite.??He?looked?at?the?situation?and?let?that?
 dictate?the?design?approach.??Note?that?this?in?itself?does?not?suggest?this,?however?as?we?have?seen?there?are?
 a?number?of?factors?that?are?suggesting?this.??
 20?Some?writing?tables?have,?as?shown?in?Appendix?C:??Overview?of?Secr?taire???abattants?by?Riesener?and?
 Chippendale?and?Library?Tables?by?Chippendale?have?drawing?platforms?in?addition?to?the?primary?writing?
 surface.???
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?202?
 ?
 built?each?table?to?the?client?s?
 specification?will?be?discussed?in?more?
 detail?later?(See?pp.?176,?191).??
 ?
 It?should?be?noted?here?that?there?are?
 two?different?approaches?that?
 Chippendale?took?to?supporting?the?
 pedestals.??The?type?shown?in?the?
 drawings?show?a?distinct?foot?on?the?
 four?corners?of?each?pedestal.??
 However,?on?several?of?the?Chippendale?
 Library?tables?detailed?in?this?study,?a?
 continuous?plinth?is?found;?including?
 the?Harewood?Table?and?the?tables?at?
 the?Dumfries?House,?Wilton?House?and?
 Corsham?Court.?The?table?at?Nostell?
 Priory?had?distinct?feet?instead?of?the?
 continuous?plinth.?21??
 ?
 The?following?measurements?were?taken?on?each?of?the?pieces?of?furniture:???
 ? On?the?Middle?Drawer?design?(Version?A);?the?height?of?the?feet,?the?height,?width,?
 and?the?depth?of?each?of?the?pedestals,?the?height,?width?and?depth?of?the?middle?
 drawer,?and?the?same?measures?for?the?table?top.?
 ? On?the?Full?Top?design?(Version?B)?the?height?of?the?feet,?the?height,?width,?and?the?
 depth?of?each?pedestal,?the?same?measurements?for?the?top?drawer?section?and?the?
 top?of?the?desk.?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 21?Of?the?tables,?that?were?not?included?in?the?detailed?review,?the?two?smaller?keyhole?dressing/writing?tables?
 had?distinct?legs?as?well?as?the?V?&?A?dressing?table.??
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 Figure?5?3:??Pictures?showing?the?distinct?foot?on?the?
 Nostell?Priory?Library?Table?(top?photo)?and?the?
 continuous?plinth?as?seen?on?the?Harewood?Desk?
 (lower?Picture).?
 ?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?203?
 ?
 ?
 ?
 As?shown?in?Figure?5?4,?there?are?five?different?sections?of?the?secr?taire???abattant?that?
 have?been?identified?and?measured.??For?each?section?the?measurement?started?at?the?
 bottom?of?the?section?then?moved?to?the?top?and?included?the?bridging?section.??The?Base?or?
 Feet?and?the?ormolu?or?wooden?border?between?the?feet?and?the?Lower?Storage?Section?
 were?all?included?in?the?measurement?of?the?Base.??The?border?between?the?Lower?Storage?
 Section?and?any?upper?section?was?included?in?this?measurement?and?not?with?any?
 measurements?for?the?Fall?Front?section?above.???For?each?of?the?secr?taire???abattant?
 ?Figure?5?4:??Constructional?layout?for?the?Secr?taire???Abattant.??
 Secr?taire???Abattant???Constructional?Layout?
 ?
 Top?
 Top?Drawer?Section?
 Fall?front?or?Abattant?
 Section?
 Lower?Storage?
 Section?
 Feet??
 Dotted?lines?indicate?the?inside?of?the?
 bevels?that?were?included?on?the?
 secr?taire???abattant?by?Riesener?and?
 Chippendale.??
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?204?
 ?
 included?here,?measurements?for?the?height,?width,?and?depth?of?each?of?these?sections?is?
 fully?detailed.???
 ?
 Please?note?that?in?the?top?section,?if?there?was?a?gallery?then?it?was?included?in?the?
 measurements.?Another?consideration?was?to?do?with?the?canted?edge?found?at?the?front?of?
 all?of?Riesener?s?secr?taire???abattants.??Measurement?was?taken?at?the?outside?of?this?
 bevel,?to?record?the?full?width?of?Riesener?s?secr?taire???abattants.??The?exceptions?to?this?
 were?the?occasions?where?the?width?of?the?front?was?narrower?than?that?of?the?back.??It?was?
 decided?that?the?front?measurement?was?more?indicative?of?the?size?of?the?internal?
 structure?than?the?back,?since?the?difference?showed?how?the?shell?of?the?piece?of?furniture?
 widened?and?not?how?the?width?of?the?internal?structure?widened.22??Many?of?sides?of?
 Riesener?s?secr?taire???abattants?were?wider?at?the?back?than?the?front.23???
 ?
 In?addition?to?the?general?construction?of?these?pieces,?the?drawers?were?examined?in?detail.??
 The?measurements?that?were?taken?included?the?size?of?the?drawers?(height,?width?and?
 depth);?the?thickness?of?the?timber?used?for?the?sides,?back,?front?and?bottom;?the?width?of?
 the?front?and?back?dovetails?and?the?angle?of?each?dovetail.?Note?that?the?width?of?the?
 dovetail?was?taken?at?the?end?of?the?dovetail?(i.e.?toward?the?centre?of?the?drawer).??The?
 drawings?showed?next?(see?Figure?5?5)?shows?the?elements?that?were?measured.??
 ?
 ?
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 22?As?shown?later?in?this?chapter?(See?p.?314),?the?outside?of?the?side?of?the?secr?taire???abattant?is?a?shell?
 within?which?there?is?a?small?distance?between?the?outside?walls?and?the?internal?structure?of?the?piece?of?
 furniture.??The?inside?essentially?consists?of?three?boxes??(the?Lower?Storage?Section,?the?Fall?Front?Section,?the?
 Top?Drawer?Section),?which?are?stacked?on?top?of?each?other?then?enclosed?in?a?shell,?which?holds?the?
 decorative?surface.??This?is?then?set?up?on?a?stand,?which?forms?the?Base?and?covered?with?a?top?(usually?
 marble?and/or?a?gallery.)?
 23?Of?the?five?that?were?studied?in?detail,?three?had?a?wider?structure?at?the?back?of?the?secr?taire???abattant?
 than?the?front?and?on?two?versions?(the?piece?at?Versailles?and?the?one?at?the?Mus?e?des?Arts?D?coratifs.??The?
 origins?of?this?design?element?seem?to?have?come?from?the?original?model?that?Riesener?made?under?the?
 supervision?of?Oeben.??
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?205?
 ?
 ?
 The?following?helps?to?understand?how?the?measurements?were?taken.???
 ?
 ? In?the?front?of?the?drawers,?lapped?dovetails?were?used?throughout?by?both?
 Chippendale?and?Riesener.??This?means?that?the?dovetail?did?not?go?all?the?way?to?the?
 front?of?the?drawer.??As?a?result?there?was?a?gap?between?the?dovetail?and?the?
 drawer?face.??This?measurement?was?also?taken.???
 ? The?width?of?the?bottom?was?taken?in?the?centre?of?the?drawer,?as?was?the?
 measurement?of?the?thickness?of?the?front,?sides,?and?back.???
 ?
 Drawer?Constructional?Elements?
 Back?View?
 Back?Dove?Tails?
 Front?Dovetails?
 Back?
 Side?
 Front? Bottom?
 Back?
 Side?
 ?
 Measuring?the?Dovetails?
 Dovetail?Angle?
 Dovetail?Width??
 ??Figure?5?5:??Drawing?of?Drawer?constructional?elements?and?measurements.?
MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE:?Chapter?V???Case?Histories? ??Page?206?
 ?
 ? In?measuring?the?drawer?front,?there?were?occasions?when?there?was?a?piece?of?
 ormolu?attached?to?its?face.??The?thickness?of?the?ormolu?was?not?included?in?the?
 measures?of?the?drawer?front.??
 ? The?measurements?of?the?dovetails?were?taken?from?one?of?the?middle?dovetails.??
 While?in?most?cases,?the?dovetails?on?a?particular?drawer?or?set?of?drawers?were?
 fairly?consistent;?there?were?exceptions?to?this.???This?obviously?excludes?both?the?top?
 and?bottom?dovetails,?which?were?frequently??half??dovetails.??Considering?only?the?
 middle?dovetails,?the?variations?in?either?the?angle?or?the?width?of?the?dovetails?were?
 noted?and?the?statistics?represent?an?average?of?the?set.??Inconsistencies?provided?
 another?observation?on?which?to?comment.?As?both?cabinetmakers??workshops?were?
 usually?very?consistent,?the?fact?that?a?particular?case?was?inconsistent?suggests?
 another?conclusion?about?the?piece.24?
 ?
 In?addition,?other?observations?were?made?on?all?pieces?of?furniture;?these?included:???
 ?
 ? Samplings?of?exposed?veneers?were?measured?for?their?thickness.??One?needs?to?
 keep?in?mind?that?this?thickness?could?be?different?from?that?of?the?original?veneer???
 restorers?frequently?sand?down?surfaces?to?revitalize?the?surface.25?To?attempt?to?
 overcome?this,?areas?that?were?least?likely?to?have?been?abraded?were?sought;?
 however?it?was?difficult?to?find?such?locations?that?also?had?measurable?edges.??
 ? Photographs?were?taken?and?observations?were?made?about?different?constructional?
 aspects?of?this?furniture,?particularly?on?the?cavities?into?which?drawers?were?slipped,?
 the?tops?of?furniture,?how?tops?were?attached?and?the?construction?of?doors.??
 ? Descriptions?of?any?ormolu?were?included?(subject?matter,?design?style,?quality,?etc.)?
 together?with?details?of?how?the?ormolu?was?attached?to?the?frame.??
 ? Descriptions?of?locks,?hinges,?handles?and?other?metal?objects?were?also?included.??
 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 24?The?most?obvious?conclusion?would?be?that?a?relatively?new?apprentice?was?working?on?the?particular?
 drawer?or?that?the?work?was?subcontracted?to?another?workshop.??These?occurrences?will?be?discussed?later???
 See?pp?316?330).??
 25?In?the?Journal?du?Garde?Meuble?there?were?several?notes?stating?that?Riesener?himself?had?been?asked?to?
 revitalize?the?colours?of?several?pieces?of?furniture?that?he?had?delivered.??It?is?believed?that?he?did?this?by?
 removing?the?top?layer?of?the?veneers?by?use?of?either?reeds?or?some?other?abrasive.??There?is?also?a?good?
 chance?that?later?restorations?included?someone?applying?an?abrasive?to?the?surface?of?the?piece?in?order?to?
 improve?its?appearance.??