Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Portable Writing Desk with Geometric Patterns and Moorish Designs
(Renaissance Europe , Baroque Europe )
Traditional Islamic decoration, with intricate patterns in inlaid pieces of wood, ivory, and bone (some dyed green), persisted in Spanish furniture long after the last Muslim stronghold of Granada was conquered in 1492, as can be seen in this desk. In the 1600s, an image of the Madonna of Mercy wearing the badge of a religious order was set into the desk's central section.
Such desks, often placed on stands, were common in upper-class Spanish households and easily transported between residences. The many Spanish residents at the court in Brussels would have brought furnishings from home with them.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| Treatment | Repaired | |
| Treatment | Drawer pull knob on lower left drawer reattached. | |
| 7/24/2018 | Treatment | repaired |
| 7/24/2018 | Treatment | A plaster replacement knob detached and was reattached with adhesive. |
| 6/14/2019 | Treatment | repaired |
| 6/14/2019 | Treatment | Plaster replacement knob was reattached |
Geographies
Spain (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 24 7/8 x W: 41 3/4 in. (63.2 x 106 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
65.22