Getty Museum

Card and Writing Table (Table à quadrille brisée)

Date

about 1725

Medium

Oak and fir veneered with bloodwood, kingwood and wamara; mahogany; drawers of walnut and oak; gilt-bronze mounts; silvered-bronze fittings; iron fittings; modern silk velvet

Culture

French

Department

Decorative Arts

Institution

Getty Museum

Card playing was a daily ritual among members of the French aristocracy and court in the 1700s, and large sums of money were won and lost at the gaming table. Supported by a fifth leg, the top of this table folds back to reveal a velvet covered surface that could be used for playing cards; the corner reserves and recessed channel around the edge of the table held betting markers. A writing slide complete with a drawer on either side could be slid out from under the body of the table. For the right-handed user, the right drawer contains an inkwell and sandpot. When not in use, the tabletop would remain folded and stored neatly against the wall.

The authoritative record is held by Getty Museum. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.