Cabinet

Charles Tisch

ca. 1884 · Rosewood, ivory, mother-of-pearl, brass, glass, and other woods · The American Wing

This cabinet was a gift of its maker, Charles Tisch, to the Metropolitan Museum in 1889. In his offer of the gift, he wrote, "This piece of Furniture received the first price [sic] at the New Orleans Exposition [18]84/85. It is a purely American production of my own manufacture and consider it worthy of a place in the Museum." While the cabinet may have been made on American soil, it borrowed design motifs from around the world. Tisch was a German immigrant cabinetmaker living in New York, and his cabinet incorporates Japanese fretwork, Eastlake-inspired spindles, Aesthetic Movement inlay patterns, and classical Ionic columns. The asymmetry of the design and the variously sized compartments recall imperial Chinese wall apparati for the display of ceramics.

Artist

Charles Tisch

Date

ca. 1884

Medium

Rosewood, ivory, mother-of-pearl, brass, glass, and other woods

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Gift of Charles Tisch, 1889