Canterbury

Canterburies were developed in the late 18th and early 19th centuries to hold printed matter like sheet music and magazines. While numerous examples survive in a variety of materials, including cast iron, canterburies incorporating papier-mâché are rare because the weight of bound sheet music and periodicals weakened the paper elements over time and eventually destroyed them.

Besides being rare, the Reves example is noteworthy for its strongly scrolled form. Beginning in the 1820s and 1830s, European and American designers returned to the rococo ornament of the second quarter of the 18th century for inspiration. Rather than copy these airy curvilinear forms and patterns, 19th century craftspersons gave their objects heavier proportions with bolder curves, as in this example. This style of ornament is known today as rococo revival.

"Decorative Arts Highlights from the Wendy and Emery Reves Collection," page 57