Commode (Comò)
furniture maker
Unknown
Datemid 18th century
Place MadeCentral Italy, Italy, Europe
MediumPainted poplar
Dimensions83.7 x 112.6 x 50.7 cm (32 15/16 x 44 5/16 x 19 15/16 in.)
ClassificationsFurniture
Credit LineIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Accession numberF26w5
eMuseum ID723145
EmbARK ObjectID12199
TMS Source ID1333
Last Updated8/14/24
Status
Not on viewWeb CommentaryThis two drawer-cassetone has a bowed front, shaped aprons, and curved legs: a simple rendition of a Rococo form. The decoration of the piece in imitation of Chinese lacquer is more impressive. On the front are horsemen and trees surrounding a lake with small boats. Similar scenes are painted on the sides. The painted surfaces have been heavily worn, and most of the upper drawer has been repainted, making it difficult to judge the original decoration of the piece, except on the sides, which are better preserved.
The iron locks are original, but the back panel was replaced in the nineteenth century.
BibliographyNotesGilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston: 1935), pp. 213-14. (Venice, 18th century)
Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston: 2011), p. 262, no. 123.
Kaeley Ferguson, "The Conservation of a Japanned Bookcase," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 22 September 2020, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/conservation-japanned-bookcase
Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston: 2011), p. 262, no. 123.
Kaeley Ferguson, "The Conservation of a Japanned Bookcase," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 22 September 2020, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/conservation-japanned-bookcase
ProvenanceNotesPurchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner from the antiques dealers Moisè Dalla Torre and Co., Venice on 29 September 1906 for 230 lire.
