Console Table

In France in the 1700s, precise rules governed the arrangement of a formal room. Console tables were generally intended for a specific place, as they were considered part of the interior architecture. Architects often designed them, usually specifying carved decoration that matched the wall paneling and mirror frames.

The carved shells, leafy scrolls, and basket of flowers on this console are all similar to a pair of tables created for the Danish ambassador to the court of Louis XV. Baron de Bernstorff, an ardent Francophile, ordered the architect Pierre Contant d'Ivry to produce designs for the furniture and interiors of his house in Copenhagen. Among the works produced were a pair of console tables that are similar both in their overall design and in their carved details to the Getty Museum's piece.