Italian, Venice
Desk with Two Side Cabinets (Scrivania con due mobili da appoggio), second half of the 18th century
Painted walnut and pine
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Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston, 2011), pp. 80-81, no. 19.
Object details
Accession number
F11n17.a-e
Primary Creator
Italian, Venice
Full title
Desk with Two Side Cabinets (Scrivania con due mobili da appoggio)
Creation Date
second half of the 18th century
Provenance
Probably purchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner's husband, John L. Gardner, Jr. (1837–1898), from the dealer Domenico Lorenzetti, Venice on 6 September 1892 for 150 lire.
Display Media
Painted walnut and pine
Dimension Notes
Desk: 72 x 89.1 x 43.4 cm (28 3/8 x 35 1/16 x 17 1/16 in.) Right cabinet: 72.2 x 30.5 x 28.8 cm (28 7/16 x 12 x 11 5/16 in.) Left cabinet: 72.2 x 33.6 x 30.8 cm (28 7/16 x 13 1/4 x 12 1/8 in.)
Web Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner used the Macknight Room as her personal study, and this was her desk. She kept a treasure trove of collectibles and memorabilia inside.This type of small desk with associated side cabinets was common amongst the furnishings of Italian country villas in the Veneto in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The delicate palette and diminutive size, suggest that it was made for a woman or child.Isabella's husband, Jack Gardner, purchased this desk for her in Venice on one of their many trips to the lagoon city.
Permanent Gallery Location
Macknight Room
Bibliography
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 70. (19th century)Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston, 2011), pp. 80-81, no. 19.
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Macknight Room
Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner used the Macknight Room as her personal study, and this was her desk. She kept a treasure trove of collectibles and memorabilia inside.This type of small desk with associated side cabinets was common amongst the furnishings of Italian country villas in the Veneto in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The delicate palette and diminutive size, suggest that it was made for a woman or child.Isabella's husband, Jack Gardner, purchased this desk for her in Venice on one of their many trips to the lagoon city.