Pier Table (c. 1829–35): Art, History and Details

Pier Table (c. 1829–35) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Joseph Meeks and Sons (American).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Ornamental tables such as this marble-topped example were most often used in rooms on a narrow wall between two windows or just across from them on an opposite wall. Usually a gilded mirror hung above the table to create a single pier of glass, top to bottom, which reflected light around the room. This table’s bold use of carved and stenciled decoration, as well as expensive white marble, indicate that it was owned by a very wealthy family.

Object facts

• Title: Pier Table
• Date: c. 1829–35
• Creator attribution: Joseph Meeks and Sons (American)
• Culture: America, New York
• Type: Furniture and woodwork
• Technique: mahogany; marble
• Dimensions: Overall: 91.5 x 105.4 x 57.1 cm (36 x 41 1/2 x 22 1/2 in.)
• Collection: Furniture
• Department: Decorative Art and Design
• Accession number: 1981.65

Collection credit

Gift of Mrs. R. Livingston Ireland

Further reading listed by the museum

• Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1981.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 69, no. 2 (February 1982): 39–82.
• Hawley, Henry. “Four Pieces of American Furniture.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 69, no. 10 (December 1982): 324–339.
• Voorsanger, Catherine Hoover, and John K. Howat. Art and the Empire City: New York, 1825-1861. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.