Desk chair (fauteuil de cabinet)

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

During the mid-eighteenth century, French menuisiers or joiners made both practical and elegant chairs, specifically for use behind a desk. By changing the traditional form of a chair, they created a so-called fauteuil de cabinet or office armchair. For greater stability, one leg was placed in front, or as in this case, an additional fifth leg was introduced so that the user could arrange his legs on either side. Further stability is given by the two back legs slightly raking backwards. With its undulating outline, the rounded back (en gondole) offers support for the upper body. The arm rests are not supported but are part of the back and allowed space to accommodate a sword, often worn at social gatherings, the two tails of a long tail-coat or the skirt of a voluminous dress.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art